Hetalia of the Dead
by HannahSakura2010
Summary: In a world taken over by the undead, a group of friends must fight for their lives to survive. M for gore and possible smut. HOTD AU Main pairings: GerIta, USUK, Franada, and possible Nichu or Rochu.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, my friends could probably have foreseen me writing this. I'm combining two of my favorite anime, Hetalia and Highschool of the Dead. It is not a crossover; it will just be a similar plot line to HOTD, with Hetalia characters. It will be rated M for blood and gore (typical to zombie thrillers) with a possible chance of smut later. If you don't like this, please don't read. If you do enjoy this kind of thing, please enjoy and review!**

**I do not own Highschool of the Dead or Hetalia.**

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Ludwig pulled Feliciano behind him as he ran across the World Academy campus. The campus should have been deserted at this time, all the students studying innocently in class. But now, the campus had been taken over by _them._ The living dead were everywhere. Ludwig recognized some of his fellow classmates as if in a dream.

_This can't be happening!_

Ludwig heard little Feliciano sobbing in fright behind him. Ludwig kept a careful eye on their surroundings. He didn't know exactly what changed the living into the dead, but he knew that it was triggered by a bite. If he or Feli got bitten by one of _them,_ then they too would quickly deteriorate into one of these flesh eating abominations. It seemed that the only way to kill them was to bash their heads in. Luckily, Ludwig was very strong. He gripped the metal bat in his hand tighter. It was his only lifeline at the moment.

_How is this possible?_

"Ludwig, we need to find Kiku! We can't just leave him!" Feliciano sobbed, tugging on Ludwig's hand insistently.

Ludwig spared the Italian a quick glance over his shoulder. Feliciano's adorable face was ashen with fright streaked with tears. His brown eyes were bright and spilling over with tears. Ludwig shook his head. "Kiku can take care of himself, Feli. He knows how to fight. It is you that I am worried about." He dodged around a young woman, raising his bat to kill her, and recognized Michelle, the student from Seychelles. The former student council president had blood running from the corner of her mouth and her usually tanned skin was a sickly pale grey. Michelle's usually pristine uniform was soaked in blood and her once azure eyes were clouded over in a milky white film. Her right shoulder was missing a large chunk of flesh, evidence of what one of those _things _could do.

Feli whimpered, recognizing her too. Michelle whirled around at the sound of his whimper and stumbled towards him, her mouth opening and closing hungrily. A deep- throated moan came from her mouth. Ludwig's bat descended.

_It all happened so fast…_

**Earlier that day…**

Ludwig slowed to a stop by the benches. He grabbed his water bottle and took a sip, jogging in place to cool down. He was in gym class and they were running laps around the track. As usual, he had finished well before everyone else. His gym teacher beamed at him.

"Excellent, as always, Ludwig!" the man said. "Record timing as well! You ran five laps in under ten minutes!"

"Thank you, sir," Ludwig replied, pleased with himself but trying not to let it show.

"As a reward, you can go back early and have some free time," the coach replied, clapping him on the shoulder.

Ludwig nodded and jogged back to the locker rooms. He poured the rest of his water over his head, not wanting to take a full shower. He quickly changed back into his school uniform and walked outside, stretching.

It was a beautiful spring day. The cherry blossoms were in bloom. _Kiku will be happy,_ Ludwig thought, catching one of the tiny pink flowers in his hands. The Japanese student always loved the cherry trees on campus.

That was when he heard the first scream.

Startled, Ludwig looked around for the source of it. There was a pair on top of a hill. It seemed to be a man and a woman. The man appeared to be raping the woman. The poor woman was screaming on the ground as the man lay on top of her. Ludwig jumped into action, running up the hill to try to help the poor woman. What he saw at the top off the hill made him stop cold in his tracks.

The man was literally eating the woman alive! The girl's throat was torn out and there was blood everywhere. The woman appeared to be dead. She was no longer screaming and she was lying still. Her skin was deathly pale. Her empty eyes stared up at the sky. Ludwig shuddered as he realized that she was dead.

"Monster," Ludwig whispered as he watched the feeding man with horror.

The man stopped at the sound of his voice. He slowly got to his feet and turned to Ludwig. The man's eyes were clouded over in white and his skin was grey. He was covered in blood. He stumbled forward toward Ludwig with a low moan.

Ludwig backed up quickly. He heard another moan. The woman was moving on the ground! Her skin had turned grey as well and her eyes were all white. She should have been dead, but she was crawling towards Ludwig. Her mouth opened and closed. A wet gurgling sound came from her throat as blood spilled out of her mouth.

Ludwig turned and ran away. He normally would stay and fight, but he knew nothing about this enemy. Somehow, the dead were coming to life and attacking the living! Ludwig thought of his friends. Kiku could defend himself, but Feliciano was defenseless and weak. He changed his course towards the school's main building where he knew Feli was still in class. He had to warn the others!

_This can't be happening!_

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**This was the first chapter/ prologue. Please tell me what you guys thought and if you want me to continue! **


	2. Chapter 2

Ludwig burst into Feliciano's classroom, startling the students. He looked around desperately for Feli.

The teacher sent him a death glare. "Mr. Beilschmidt, I do not appreciate you interrupting my class. Kindly leave now."

Ludwig had finally located Feli near the back of the classroom by the window. He had been dozing off as usual, but had been startled awake by Ludwig's loud entrance. Ludwig strode over to him and yanked him up out of his chair. Feliciano gave a startled yelp.

"Ludwig, what is wrong, ve?" Feliciano asked.

Ludwig began dragging him towards the door. He looked back out over the classroom filled with startled students. "There was a murder on campus just now. I suggest that you all run for cover." Ludwig knew that they would not believe him if he said that they were being attacked by dead people.

The teacher frowned. "What are you talking about, Beilschmidt? What happened?"

"I just witnessed a murder. There is a killer loose on campus. Get to a safe place and arm yourselves," Ludwig ordered.

Feliciano gasped. "Really, Ludwig?" he asked in a tiny, frightened voice. He clung to Ludwig's hand.

Ludwig opened his mouth to answer but he was interrupted by the loudspeaker. "Attention, everyone! Get to a safe place immediately! We are being attacked by…" The man on the speaker suddenly screamed. "NO! Get back! No stop! AGGHHHHH!" There were wet sounds that sounded like flesh being eaten. The voice continued to scream until the loudspeaker was cut off. There was dead silence.

Ludwig dragged Feli out of the door. The rest of the class was in shock, staring at the loudspeaker. Ludwig pulled a shocked Feliciano down the hall. He had a feeling that there was about to be a mass panic and he didn't want to be trampled. Sure enough, someone screamed and chaos descended on the World Academy.

Ludwig pulled Feliciano up into his arms and ran as fast as he could down the hall, getting out of the way as classroom doors slammed open and frightened students ran out of them in a panic. Ludwig pulled Feli into a nook in the wall. He held the slender boy close as terrified students stampeded past, pushing and shoving each other out of the way in their panic. Feliciano was crying in fright, his face pale as he clung to Ludwig.

"L-Ludwig, what h-happened?" he sobbed. "What's g-going on?"

Ludwig sighed, petting his soft auburn hair. "I don't know, Feli," he whispered. "But I promise that I will get you out safe."

Feli sniffed and nodded his head against Ludwig's chest. "We need to find Kiku and fratello too," he said. "We all need to get out together!"

"Kiku is probably in the dojo. Lovino is undoubtedly with Antonio. We will find them but I need to get you out first. You need not worry about them."

They waited until the flood of students had passed their niche. Going out into the hall again, Ludwig covered Feli's brown eyes. About half a dozen students lay trampled in the hall, unmoving. Ludwig watched them for a moment. When they didn't get up, he dragged Feli out of the hall, leaving the dead behind.

They made their way to the double doors leading out onto the quad. Ludwig froze and Feli screamed.

More of the living dead were out in the quad, preying on terrified students. When Feli screamed, several of them turned and started making their way towards them. Ludwig covered Feli's mouth before he could scream again and dodged around the dead students. They ran in the direction of the dojo. Passing the baseball fields, Ludwig stopped, getting an idea. He dragged Feli over to the equipment shed and kicked down the door. He grabbed a metal baseball bat and handed Feli a sharp metal rod.

"Just knock them away, if you can. Don't let them touch you!" Ludwig told Feli. Feli took the rod gingerly.

Ludwig looked outside and came face to face with one of _them._ He yelped and swung the bat, hitting the thing hard in the chest. He heard the crack of ribs breaking. The thing wasn't fazed and stumbled forward again as if nothing had happened. Ludwig stared in horror. Feli thrust with his spear. It sank into the thing's neck. Still, it kept coming. Ludwig pushed Feli back and swung his bat at its head. The bat connected and the thing finally dropped to the ground, its head broken open.

"Aim for the head to kill it!" he told Feli and dragged him away, again heading in the direction of the dojo.

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**The first few chapters will be introductions for the characters. They will be really short so I am sorry about that. They will start getting longer when the introductions are over. The next chapter is Alfred's and Arthur's introduction.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Alright! This chapter is Arthur and Alred's introduction!**

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Arthur peeked out of the empty classroom. The hallway was completely empty save for several dead students that had apparently been trampled in the mass panic that had ensued after that awful intercom message. Behind him, Alfred swore violently.

"This is really bad, Artie!" Alfred said, looking helplessly at the mangled corpses littering the once pristine hallways.

Arthur glared over his shoulder at the American. "It is _Arthur_ for the umpteenth time!" he snapped. "And I can see perfectly fine that yes, this is indeed bad, so stop stating the obvious, prat!"

Alfred rolled his eyes. "You don't have to be so mean, you know," he said, pouting.

Arthur threw him another scathing glance but didn't comment. "We should get out of here as fast as we can," he said. "I don't really know what is going on, but I don't like it!"

Alfred agreed and the two made their way quickly out into the hall, carefully avoiding the trampled students. Alfred stopped and looked out of a window overlooking the once beautiful and serene campus. Now, it was littered with dead bodies. What made his blood run cold was the fact that a great many students seemed to be attacking other students and… "They are _eating_ each other," Alfred whispered in horror.

Arthur looked back at him. "What was that?" the golden blonde Brit asked, furrowing his thick eyebrows.

Alfred gestured him to come over to the window. Arthur's face paled at what he saw. "What the bloody hell is happening?" he gasped.

Alfred took his hand and pulled him away from the window. His body had broken out in a cold sweat at the images now burned into his mind. He dragged Arthur down the hallway, stopping to look around the next corner. The hallway was deserted.

They crept forward from hallway to hallway, finding the school deserted except for the trampled bodies lying in every hallway. They suddenly heard screaming from up ahead. Alfred turned the corner and his body went cold again.

There were more of the students in this hallway leading to the outside. A young girl was struggling in the grip of an older student. He was biting into her neck. The girl was crying and screaming, which seemed to be drawing more of them to her. Alfred made to run to her aid, but behind him Arthur gasped. Alfred turned around and saw some more of them making their way towards him. He got a clear view of their faces. Their eyes were completely white with no irises and their skin was grey. He pulled Arthur behind him and backed up quickly, shielding the smaller man with his body. Arthur pulled him to the side and they retreated back down the hallway. Alfred looked back behind them. The dead followed them, stumbling after the sound of their retreating footsteps.

"We should find another door," Arthur said. "And it looks like we need something to defend ourselves with as well."

"If only I had my pistol," Alfred muttered. The school had a no weapons policy, so he had been forced to leave his gun at his home in America.

"That would be splendid, but you don't," Arthur said dryly.

Alfred ignored the Brit and stopped in front of the janitor's closet. He opened the door and looked around inside, looking for a potential weapon. His eyes alighted on a metal broom handle. He grabbed it and held it out to Arthur, who took it. Alfred grabbed another and shut the door to the closet, running with Arthur down the hall.

The next exit they came to was in a similar state to the last one. The dead patrolled the hallway leading to the doors. Alfred froze, motioning Arthur to be quiet. Arthur stepped out from behind him, observing the dead students walking around. One of them stumbled close to Alfred and Arthur. Alfred raised his broom to fend it off but Arthur laid a hand on him arm, shaking his head at Alfred's questioning look. Arthur looked hard at the dead man. It didn't seem to see them, even though they were standing just a few feet away. Arthur prodded it back with his broom and it turned around and stumbled off in another direction without reacting.

Arthur pulled Alfred back down the hall. "I do not think that they can see," he told the younger man. "They may just be attracted to sound. That girl earlier was screaming and they all came after her. I doubt that they can feel pain either, or that one would have reacted to the broom's touch. I wonder how they can be incapacitated."

"Incapacitated is a big word," Alfred whined.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "I am wondering how they can be stopped or killed if they can't feel pain," he said dryly. "You are an uneducated twat, American."

Alfred stuck his tongue out at the Brit. "That's what she said!"

"Well, s_he_ was correct, then," Arthur said, clearly not getting the joke. Alfred sighed at the Brit's hopelessness.

"Whatever. We can just go quietly and push them out of the way," Alfred said. He was impatient to be out of the school.

Arthur agreed and Alfred made to take his hand again. Arthur pulled it away. "I might need to use both hands," he said. "I'll follow close behind you, don't worry."

Alfred shook his head. "We can't get separated," he said quietly.

"We won't, now go!" Arthur ordered.

Alfred turned the corner and pushed the dead out of the way as he and Arthur made a break for the doors to the school.

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**The zombies in this fic are like the High school of the Dead zombies. They cannot see or run and are attracted to sound. And of course, only a direct blow to the had will stop them! Next up are Kiku and Yao!**

**Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Yao! Please come on! We have to get out of here!"

Yao looked into the Lithuanian man's terrified face. "I'll be done in a minute aru," he said and stiffened. "Behind you!" he warned.

Toris whirled around and used the metal pole he was holding to fend off another of the "dead" patients. The World Academy's infirmary had been flooded with students sporting bad bites and other injuries. Every single one of them had died soon after coming into the infirmary. They didn't stay dead for long.

Yao shoved some more medicine bottles into his satchel. He had no doubt that they would need them later. That was when he heard Toris gasp in delight.

"_Feliks!"_ the Lithuanian man crowed in delight, a smile finding its way onto his face. Yao stared in shock.

Toris had come into the infirmary where Yao was interning in the afternoons after his morning classes. He had been supporting Feliks, who had what looked like a nasty bite mark to his shoulder. He had been crying, his feminine face pale and scared. Toris had stayed by his side, comforting him until he died. He had stayed there still after Feliks passed, until the dead students started to get up off of the beds.

Feliks was indeed stumbling over towards Toris. His pretty blue eyes were now sickly white. His skin was grey. Blood ran out of the corner of one eye, as if he was crying tears of blood.

"Toris, stay away from him!" Yao snapped. He had seen what had happened to the other medical intern. She had been bitten by one of the dead and was now stumbling around the hospital room, moaning dryly. Yao grabbed a broom and fended off the walking remains of a student.

Toris was walking over to Feliks, his arms outstretched, the smile still on his face. He approached Feliks and drew his friend into a hug. Feliks didn't respond at all to the touch. Toris pulled back and smiled at Feliks. "I knew you wouldn't die," he said.

Feliks lunged forward and sank his teeth into Toris' shoulder. Toris screamed. Yao mirrored it with his own voice. Some of the other walking dead turned at the sound of his scream and made their way towards the struggling Lithuanian. The rest stumbled forward towards Yao, their mouths opening and closing. Yao tried to hit some of them away but they kept coming at him. A shape loomed up from his side and he looked into the face of one of the dead students. Yao squeaked and went numb. He dimly realized that he was about to die as he looked into the mouth of the young girl. He closed his eyes and raised his arms as if to ward off the attack.

The expected bite never came.

Yao heard a hiss, as if something sharp was being sliced through the air. A second later, he heard a loud thump. He opened his eyes. The girl was now decapitated, her head rolling on the floor a few feet away as her body crumpled to the floor and lay still. Yao looked around for his rescuer.

There was a blur of motion as a figure danced through the dead students. Light reflected off of the metal blade of a katana as the sword sliced through the air, claiming a new victim every time it connected. The figure stopped beside Toris and Feliks. The hilt of the sword came down and smashed into Felik's head, breaking it. The boy slumped to the floor, truly dead this time.

"Yao-san? Are you okay?" Kiku Honda asked, walking forward towards the stunned Yao. His katana was held to his side and his free hand was outstretched. "You aren't bitten, are you?"

"K-Kiku!" Yao sobbed, stumbling forward and throwing his arms around the Japanese. Kiku stiffened at first contact, but relaxed, putting his arms around Yao and squeezing tightly.

"Are you bitten?" the polite voice asked in his ear again. Yao could feel Kiku shaking.

Yao pulled back and shook his head, wiping away tears. "I'm not, but Toris…" Yao trailed off. Toris was clutching Felik's body to his chest, tears leaking out of his eyes. He was bleeding profusely from his wounds.

Kiku sighed and walked forward until he knelt before Toris. "You are Toris Loriantis, am I correct?"

Toris met his eyes and nodded, rocking back and forth with Feliks.

Kiku smiled kindly at him. "You were very brave, trying to protect your lover," he said quietly. "I am sorry that this happened to you."

Toris whimpered and started coughing violently. When he finished, there was blood running from the corner of his mouth.

Kiku looked sad. "I have never seen anyone survive one of these bites," he said quietly. "It looks like you are not the exception. I will give you a choice. I could end your misery now and you can go to your friend while still in your own mind. If you would like, however, I will wait until you have changed, then I will kill you to prevent you from killing anyone else. I am sorry to present you with this choice, friend."

Toris just stared at him. His green eyes drifted back down to Feliks' body. Something hardened in his eyes and he looked back up at Kiku, determined. "I will go to Feliks in my own mind," he said firmly. "Please, end my life now so I will not become a danger to anyone else." He gave Kiku a weak smile, which Kiku returned. Toris pulled Feliks closer and laid his face against Feliks', a smile on his face as his green eyes closed for the last time.

Kiku stood to his feet and raised his sword. "Goodbye, brave warrior," he said quietly. The katana flashed downwards and Yao closed his eyes tightly, turning away. He took deep, shuddering breaths, trying to calm down. He could hear Kiku moving around behind him. Suddenly, he felt the Japanese's presence at his back. "Yao-san, are you okay?"

Yao turned around, his eyes filled with tears. Almost involuntarily, his eyes darted over Kiku's shoulder to where Toris and Feliks lay. Kiku had placed a blanket from one of the beds over them. They were placed side by side underneath it. A single rose from one of the vases on the windowsills was on top of the bloodstained sheet. Yao gasped in a breath and started crying in earnest, clinging to Kiku's shirt tightly and sobbing hysterically.

Kiku patted his back awkwardly. "Please calm yourself, Yao-san. We need to go now. It is all right. I will protect you."

"What is happening?" Yao gasped. "This is impossible! The dead can't come to life!"

Kiku shook his head slowly, rubbing soothing circles on Yao's back. "I have no idea how this has happened," he said, a slight note of impatience in his voice. "But it has happened, and we are in danger, Yao-san, so we must leave this place now before more of them come!"

Yao sniffed and nodded, letting Kiku go. He opened his satchel and moved towards the small bathroom. Kiku followed him, confused. Yao was unbuttoning the white nurse's uniform that he was wearing. The white cloth was splattered with blood.

"Yao-san, what are you doing?" Kiku asked. Yao suddenly let the shirt slip from his shoulders. Kiku got a glimpse of his pale back before his red shirt covered it. "You are changing?" Kiku asked in disbelief.

Yao let the white pants fall next. He quickly pulled on his black pants and turned back to Kiku, buttoning up his shirt. "Those clothes were extremely uncomfortable aru," he said, pulling on his shoes and picking up his satchel. "I can move better in these. It will be easier for me to run in my own clothes aru."

Kiku sighed but let no more of his irritation show. He grabbed Yao's hand and dragged him to the door of the infirmary. He opened it and looked out. He pulled back and shut the door quietly. "There are many more of them out there," he said quietly. "I have found that the only way to kill them is to attack the head. I do not know if they can see with the white film over their eyes, but they can hear extremely well from what I have gathered. You will have to be silent." He reached out and took Yao's bag from him. "This might hinder you if you need to run. Please leave it."

Yao hesitated for a moment before letting the satchel drop. He reached inside it and withdrew a wallet. He opened it and took out a picture, which he put in his pocket. "I'll need a weapon too," Yao told Kiku.

Kiku grabbed the pole that Toris had been using to fend off students. He handed it to Yao. "You can use it to push them back. Don't stop to kill each one that gets in your path. It would take up too much time."

Yao nodded and Kiku took his hand again, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Let's go," Yao said with a final look back to Toris and Feliks' resting place.

Kiku opened the door and they ran outside hand in hand, closing the door behind them.

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**This is the second time that I have killed off Toris and Feliks. I don't hate them and I actually like their pairing. I'm sorry for all of their fans. I have nothing against them. I'll probably write a LietPol fanfiction for them at some point.**

**The next chapter will be the last one for the introductions and it will be Ivan, Francis, and Matthew.**


	5. Chapter 5

**This is the last introduction chapter. This is Ivan, Francis, and Matthew. **

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Ivan calmly cracked open a dead student's head with his iron waterpipe, his usual polite smile on his face. Behind him, Francis was pushing some of them away from Matthew with the branch that he had picked up off of the ground. Matthew clutched the white bear he had with him to his chest, his blue eyes wide and terrified.

"More of them are coming to you, Francis," Ivan said calmly. He killed another with his pipe. The Russian was enjoying himself immensely, although his face didn't show it. He kept his polite smile in place as he put an end to another former student.

Matthew whimpered behind him. Ivan gave the Canadian an irritated glance over his shoulder. Francis drew Matthew into a quick hug, comforting his boyfriend.

"I am here, mon amour. You need not worry your beautiful head!" Francis purred, sliding his hand down to the small of Matthew's back.

"Now is not the time, da?" Ivan snapped. He struck out at another student. "I will be leaving you behind now."

Francis sighed and released Matthew. He readied his branch again and hit another girl in the chest, pushing her back. "We should try to find a way past them," the Frenchman suggested. "Standing here killing them is taking up too much of our precious time, mon cher!"

Ivan sighed and killed yet another before turned to Francis. He reluctantly nodded. Francis took the lead with his longer tree branch, pushing the animated corpses out of their way. Matthew went next, darting glances around him and relaying potential threats to Francis. Ivan took the rear, still getting to bash heads now and then.

The normally peaceful and safe campus was completely taken over by the undead. Ivan could occasionally hear signs of life. People were screaming and crying all around them, being attacked by the undead. Ivan and Francis had already figured out that they were attracted to sound. Normally, Ivan would welcome chaos. Anything to break the boredom he felt on the peaceful campus. But this was a bit too much. He had had to kill his older sister Yekaterina earlier. Natalia was nowhere to be found, but he wasn't exactly worried about her. Despite the no weapons policy, she always carried knives on her person and knew how to defend herself.

Francis led them to the main office of the school. Ivan knew that there were keys to the numerous busses on campus and medical supplies as well.

Matthew had wanted to stay and look for survivors, particularly his older brother Alfred, and Francis had compromised by saying that they would wait for an hour or so in the main office. Matthew had sent a text to Alfred's cell phone, which he knew he kept on him, and prayed that Alfred had gotten it. He fervently hoped that his older brother was still alive. He focused on watching their surroundings and talking quietly to Francis.

They reached the office and Francis tentatively opened the door. A grey hand shot out and grabbed his shirt, pulling him forward. Francis cried out in fright as the dead faculty member leaned forward to bite Francis' neck. Ivan shot forward and slammed his pipe down on the man's head. Francis stumbled back as more grey hands reached out of the door. Ivan started bashing heads, actually letting out a little laugh in delight as one by one all the faculty members fell under his onslaught. When they all lay dead, he and Francis dragged them out of the doorway and entered the faculty room. Francis stayed with Matthew by the door as Ivan roamed the faculty room, senses attuned for the undead.

"Was that all?" Matthew asked in a tiny voice.

Ivan turned to give them an affirmative when a closet door burst open and a man stumbled out behind Ivan. Ivan turned and smashed his head in. He stared down at the dead man with contempt. "Now they are all gone," he said softly.

Francis and Matthew moved forward into the room cautiously, Francis keeping a protective arm around Matthew. Matthew's phone suddenly dinged, making them all jump about ten feet into the air. Matthew pulled it out of his pocket and flipped it open. A text alert flashed across the screen. The sender was…

"ALFRED!" Matthew yelled. Francis clapped a hand over his mouth. Matthew ignored him in favor of opening the text.

_I'm w/Artie. Coming soon. Stay there._

Matthew almost cried in relief, but at that moment, the door burst open. More of the dead stumbled into the faculty room. Ivan and Francis readied themselves to fight again. Matthew watched with wild eyes. There were too many of them...


	6. Chapter 6

The doors to World Academy's fighting dojo were closed. The silence surrounding the dojo was not unusual, but today the silence might hold deadly secrets. Ludwig stood at the door and listened carefully for signs of life from inside. Hearing nothing, he quietly opened the unlocked door and peeked inside.

The single room dojo was deserted. There were four or five bodies lying on the floor. Ludwig took a deep breath, praying that none of them were Kiku. He walked inside the room quietly and walked towards the bodies. When he got close enough, he stopped, keeping his distance just in case. He examined the corpses.

Two of them wore the uniform of the dojo's training class. Neither of them had black hair, which relieved Ludwig. All of the bodies had their heads destroyed in some way or another. One of them had lost their head altogether. Ludwig smiled grimly. Kiku was all right then. The bodies all showed signs of severe cuts and stab wounds, undoubtedly inflicted by a katana. Kiku must have figured out how to kill them by trial and error as Ludwig and Feli had done.

"I-Is Kiku…" Feli asked, trailing off. He swallowed hard, his eyes terrified.

Ludwig gave him a grim smile. "He is not among the dead. I think that he is still alive and probably looking for us."

Feliciano gasped in delight and Ludwig turned to leave when he felt something latch onto his ankle. Feli shrieked in surprise.

One of the dead students had a hold on Ludwig's leg. He was pulling himself forward, trying to take a bite. Ludwig kicked him in the head. The grip didn't loosen. He brought his bat down on its head. The student finally lay still.

Ludwig stooped and pried the grey fingers off of his leg, shuddering as he touched the dead skin. He heard Feli give another cry.

More of the dead had been attracted by Feli's scream. Ludwig shouted and ran forward, smashing his bat into one's face. It dropped to the floor. Feli was crying. More and more of them streamed into the dojo, following the sounds of human life. There were too many of them for Ludwig to fight alone.

"We have to run," Ludwig told Feliciano, who was cowering behind him. Ludwig grabbed his hand and dragged him over to the paper screen. He ripped through it with Feliciano's sharpened pole. More of the dead were on this end. Several turned at the sound of paper shredding. He knocked them aside and dragged Feliciano forward. He felt a resistance. Feliciano screamed. One of them had his arm in a grip and was pulling him towards it, its mouth opening and closing hungrily. Ludwig killed it and turned back to the exit that he had created. Still more of them had flooded in, following Feli's scream. Ludwig pulled little Feli close and prepared to fight, sweating and close to panic. There were too many of them!

Suddenly, some of the ones coming through the screen were knocked out of the way with a broom. A tall man with glasses stuck his head through the ripped screen.

"Come on!" he yelled, urging them forward. Ludwig pulled Feliciano outside. He glanced at their rescuer and recognized Alfred F. Jones, the American student in their class. Arthur Kirkland was right behind him, his pale face red from exertion as he batted some of the undead away, swearing a blue streak the whole time.

"Thanks!" Ludwig said, nodding at Alfred.

The American grinned. "No problem! I am the hero after all!"

Arthur made a noise of annoyance behind him. "We need to get moving!" he snapped. "Are we going to find your brother or not?"

Alfred nodded and turned back to Ludwig. "We are going to the staff room. My brother sent me a text saying that he was there. Are you coming with us?"

"Sure," Ludwig said. "We need to find our friend Kiku as well."

Alfred nodded. The four of them ran off in the direction of the staff office, leaving the dojo full of the dead behind them.

* * *

Kiku crept along with Yao close behind him. The two had left the infirmary and were heading in the direction of the gates. They did not really have much of a plan, but Kiku was desperate to find Feliciano. They had not had a chance to explore the main building of the school yet, and Kiku was impatient to find his best friends. He glanced over his shoulder at Yao, who was keeping a close eye on their surroundings, clutching the pole that he still had with him.

The Chinese man had been quiet since they had left the infirmary. Kiku hoped that he wasn't going to go into shock. Yao had always had a cool, level head and was able to keep calm in most situations, making him invaluable as a nurse. But this was something that he had never experienced nor planned for before. It should have been impossible for dead bodies to come back to life and attack living humans. Kiku still had the images burned into his mind of his fellow trainees coming to life and attacking him. He suddenly got an image of little Feliciano as one of them, his tanned skin grey and his lovely eyes clouded over in a sickly film of white. He shuddered and forced the image from his mind.

"Are you okay aru?" Yao asked. He had seen Kiku shudder.

"I was just thinking how awful it would be to see my close friends become these mindless things," Kiku said quietly. He reached back and tentatively took Yao's hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

Yao squeezed him back. "I understand aru. I hope that you never have to go through that."

"Thank you," Kiku said. "I don't know what I would do if you or Feliciano or Ludwig got turned into one of _them._"

"Ludwig can defend himself, and I am sure that Feliciano is with him aru. You need not worry about them aru." Kiku gave Yao a small smile in response and tightened his grip on Yao's hand.

They were passing by the kitchens and Yao suddenly stopped. Kiku looked at him, confused.

"Let's go in here aru," Yao said, tugging Kiku towards the door. "I just had an idea. It will only take a moment aru."

Kiku pulled Yao back when they reached the open doors of the kitchens. "I'll go in first," he told the Chinese. Readying his sword, he slipped silently into the kitchens.

The kitchens appeared deserted. Kiku moved forward into the kitchens. Yao stayed at the door behind him, keeping lookout. Getting an idea, Kiku grabbed a metal spatula. It would make enough noise to attract any dead currently in the kitchens, but would not be loud enough to attract the dead outside. He signaled to Yao his plan and Yao nodded. Kiku let the spatula drop. The room echoed with a metallic clang. Kiku gripped his sword and carefully watched his surroundings. No dead person made themselves known. After a moment, Kiku motioned Yao to come into the room.

Yao cautiously entered the kitchens, looking around him.

"Make it fast," Kiku murmured. Yao nodded and went off in the direction of the cooking utensils. Kiku followed him and stood guard as Yao riffled through the metal pots and pans in search of something. Kiku shifted impatiently. Yao made a noise of delight and Kiku turned to see what he was happy about.

Yao was holding a large metal cooking wok in one hand, testing the weight of it and swinging it around in controlled circles. He seemed pleased.

Kiku suddenly heard a stumbling footstep behind him and he whirled around. One of the dead was approaching them. It was a woman, and she was wearing the uniform of the kitchen staff. Kiku readied his sword to kill her, but in a blur of motion, Yao shot forward and swung the wok against her head. The iron connected with a dull clang. The woman dropped to the floor and lay still. Kiku watched her cautiously for a moment. She did not stir. A puddle of blood was forming around her head. "Hello?" Kiku asked softly to see if she would respond. There was no response. He turned back to Yao.

Yao looked pleased with himself. He was testing the weight of the wok again with a big smile on his face. "There is not a dent or scratch on it aru!" he said, obviously delighted.

"Nice arm," Kiku said, impressed. Yao beamed at him.

"I refuse to be helpless aru. If there is something that I can do then I will do it aru," Yao told him. He reached out and took Kiku's hand. "This is what I wanted to get. Let's go find your friends aru!"

Kiku gave Yao one of his rare bright smiles and tugged him out of the kitchens. "I wonder where they might be," Kiku murmured, looking around him.

"Do they have cell phones aru?"

"I don't have mine on me," Kiku sighed. Of all the days he left his phone in the dorm room, it had to be today!

"You can use mine aru," Yao said, pulling it out of his pocket.

Kiku took the phone, his mouth quirking at the panda charm attached to it. Typical. He tried to remember Feliciano's cell phone number. He hoped the Italian student had it on him. Ludwig never carried his phone to classes. Kiku dialed in a number that he thought was correct and held the phone to his ear.

It rang a few times before the voicemail picked up. "Ve~ you have reached Feliciano Vargas! I am probably sleeping or eating or with Ludwig and Kiku right now but leave a message and I'll call you back! Ciao!"

Kiku sighed. "The number was correct, but he did not pick up," he told Yao. The phone beeped, signaling Kiku to start recording the voicemail. "Ita-chan," Kiku began, using Feliciano's pet name, "It is Kiku. I am with Yao. If you get this, please tell me where we can meet. I sincerely hope that you are okay, my friend. I hope to see you soon." Kiku hung up the phone and handed it back to Yao. Yao looked at him sympathetically.

"I'm sorry aru. I know that you are very worried," Yao said quietly. The phone suddenly vibrated, startling the Chinese. He handed the phone back to Kiku, who answered it with shaking hands.

"Hello?"

"KIKU! Are you alright? I'm with Ludwig! We are going to the staff office to look for Alfred's brother! Where are you?"

Kiku let out a sigh of relief. "I am over by the kitchens, Feli. I will meet you at the office shortly. Who else is with you?"

"Ludwig, Alfred Jones, and Arthur Kirkland. We are looking for Alfred's brother… um, what was his name again, Alfred? Oh right! Matthew is his name! He said that he is at the…" Feli fell silent.

"Feli? Talk to me! What happened? What is going on over there?" Kiku snapped, losing his calm demeanor in his worry for the little Italian.

"The office is being invaded by _those things,"_ Feli whispered. "Please, come quickly, Kiku! We need you! A living person is in there!"

Kiku had grabbed Yao's hand and was running in the direction of the office. He felt the beginnings of a panic attack starting to build up in him at the thought of little Feli being in danger. He suppressed the feelings of panic and forced himself to calm down. "We'll be right there, Ita-chan!" he whispered, dodging around some of the dead. He wasn't going to waste time killing them, not when Feliciano could be in danger! "Stay safe until then!"

Kiku hung up the phone and focused on running, Yao struggling to keep up. "The office is being attacked!" Kiku informed Yao, smacking another dead teacher away without slowing down. "It sounds like Alfred's brother is trapped in there and most likely they are trying to get him out. We have to help them!"

Yao nodded, gripping Kiku's hand tighter. _Please stay safe for just a little longer, Feli!_ Kiku thought. _We are on our way!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the long wait! Here is the next chapter.**

**I realized that this story does not have much of a plot. I apologize. I'm trying to very loosely follow the HOTD plotline, but I want to be original with this story. **

**Xiang= Hong Kong, Mei=Taiwan, Scottie=Scotland.**

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There were dozens of the dead attacking the office. Still, Alfred knew that there must be living people in there, because he could hear the sounds of fighting and shouting from within. He didn't know how many people were with Matthew, but he knew that they could not hold out for much longer with so many dead attacking them.

"Alfred, no! We need a plan!" Arthur told him.

Alfred was currently being restrained by Ludwig, Feliciano, and Arthur as he struggled to rush to his brother's aid. "Let me the hell go, Arthur!" Alfred snarled. "My brother is in there!"

"I know!" Arthur snapped back. "But you cannot rush in there blindly like a git, wanker! You will be eaten! We need a plan!"

Alfred whirled around and glared at Arthur, his fists curling. "Screw your plan! Mattie needs me _now!"_

"Alfred, please listen. I know that there are people in there, but we need a plan of action if we are all to get out of this together," Ludwig said, trying to calm the desperate American down. "You will not do your brother any good if you get killed yourself! He would not want you to get hurt!"

Alfred stopped fighting, but he remained tense. He stared at the staff office. "Hurry up," he whispered.

"Alright! Everyone listen!" Ludwig said. "There is only one door leading into the office. The dead are attacking there. We do not have to kill each one. We just need to knock them aside to get to the living in there. I will go first. Alfred, you follow me, then Arthur! Feli… you…" Ludwig trailed off, staring at the little Italian. "You should stay out here."

"I don't want to stay out here by myself! I want to help too! Even if it is scary, one of our friends is in there! I'm coming too!" Feliciano gripped his spear tightly in his small hands, a determined look on his face.

Ludwig sighed, but didn't argue. Every second that passed decreased the living students' chance for survival. "Fine, you go in between me and Alfred. Is everybody ready? Let's go!" Ludwig led the charge to the office doors, brandishing the metal bat. He knocked dead students and faculty members out of his way as he slowly fought his way into the office.

There were more of the dead in the small space. He could hear sounds of fighting coming from a far corner. Feliciano kept close to his heels. Alfred and Arthur entered the office behind him.

"MATTIE!" Alfred yelled.

"Al?" a soft voice yelled from the corner.

Alfred dashed forward and swung his broom with a vengeance, knocking the dead out of his way. Ludwig followed behind and killed the dead that got in his way. He kept Feli beside him the entire way, Arthur following behind him. The Brit was bringing the metal broom handle down on the dead students' heads as hard as he could and swearing violently the entire time.

Eventually, they cleared a path to the far corner where the sounds of the living came from. Ludwig recognized Francis Bonnefoy and Ivan Braginski. He assumed the third student with them was Matthew, although he couldn't remember ever seeing the young man before. The trio was covered in blood, although none of them seemed to be bitten. Ivan's violet eyes were alight as he continued to kill the advancing students.

More of the dead seemed to be coming, following the shouts and sounds of fighting coming from the staff office. Ludwig killed and killed, but there seemed to be no end to them. His arms were getting tired. Beside him, Ivan and Alfred seemed to be weakening as well, their movements becoming lethargic. Feli, Francis, and Arthur did their best to knock the dead away, but more and more kept coming. A group of them stumbled up from Ludwig's side and he turned to face them, raising his bat above his head. He struggled to get the bat up, and when he brought it down on the first student's head it failed to break it. The student paused for a moment before resuming his assault. Ludwig couldn't get his bat up in time to beat it off again.

There was a sudden commotion from the door to the office. Several dead students dropped to the ground, their heads broken or stabbed. A blur of motion raced over to their corner and Ludwig dimly recognized Kiku as the Japanese swung his katana viciously, attacking the dead students. Ludwig heard more muted clangs from nearer the door and saw a short Asian man swinging a cooking wok with deadly force at the animated corpses.

Kiku and Yao helped finish off the remaining students. When all of them lay dead on the ground, Kiku looked over at his fellow survivors. "Are you all right?" he asked softly.

Feli gave a quiet, happy cry and dashed out from behind Ludwig, throwing his arms around Kiku and holding him tightly. Kiku stiffened at first but relaxed, hugging Feliciano close to him and running the fingers of one hand through the Italian's auburn hair gently. A happy smile was on his face as he embraced his friend.

Ludwig walked up to him on shaky legs and put a hand on Kiku's shoulder. "I am glad to see that you are alright, friend," he said quietly, a rare smile on his face. Kiku returned the smile, reaching up and squeezing the hand on his shoulder.

Yao came up behind him. "There are no more that are close outside, but we should still be quiet," he told the rest. He flipped his long ponytail over his shoulder.

"Yao-Yao!" Ivan said, delighted. He pulled Yao into a tight embrace, lifting the smaller man off of the ground.

Yao yelped and struggled in the Russian's grip. "Stop it, Ivan aru! I can't breathe!" Kiku stepped forward and pulled Yao out of the Russian's arms, holding his friend steady as he gasped for breath. Ivan pouted. "Thanks!" Yao gasped. He turned to glare at Ivan. "You almost killed me aru!"

Ivan laughed. "I am happy to see you alive, Yao!"

Yao's mouth twitched. "I am happy to see you too, Braginski. Now please try not to suffocate me."

"This is all heart-warming and everything," Arthur began dryly, "but need I remind you that we are under attack? We need a plan of action before more of them come."

"I agree! We need to get out of the school," Alfred spoke up. "Once we get out, we can go get the police or something! Dude, why haven't we called them already? This seems pretty serious!"

Arthur glared at him. "Don't you think that someone would already have bloody tried, you git?" he snapped.

"I will call," Feliciano piped up. He whipped out his cell phone and dialed the number for the police. Feli frowned. "It went through, but it says that the line is busy. Is that even possible?"

Yao pulled out his phone and dialed the number himself. He grimaced. "I got the same aru. What does this mean?"

"It means that everywhere must be like this, mon cher," Francis said in a quiet voice. The Frenchman hurried over to the still open door and closed it. He picked up the remote and turned on the small TV and flipped to the news channel.

The news station appeared to be in an uproar. People were running and talking in urgent tones. The pretty young newswoman was shouting to make herself heard over all the chaos. "We strongly urge everyone to get inside and bar the doors and windows. The disease is spreading rapidly and seems to be highly out of control. The infected are extremely dangerous. They can infect you with a single bite. Do not confront any of the infected that you meet! The safest thing would be for everyone to calmly retreat to a safe place and arm themselves. If you are forced into a confrontation with one of the infected, aim for the head with deadly force. We will continue to bring you updates on the situation. We are told that government forces are on their way…"

Ludwig sighed. "Nobody knows what is going on here. The police lines are jammed. Dead people have taken over the city."

"Where can we go?" Feliciano whispered.

"We will all stay together," Kiku said, patting Feli on the head. "We can protect each other." Kiku glanced at Yao as he said this.

"I definitely think that we should try to get off of the campus," Alfred told them. "It isn't safe here."

"It isn't safe anywhere!" Arthur told him, staring at the TV screen and at the chaos overtaking the newsroom. "We won't be safe anywhere that we go!"

"We still need to try to get off of the campus," Francis said. "Once we get out, we can look for a safe place, oui?"

"Yeah!" Matthew said in his quiet voice. "I agree with Francis!"

Francis shot his boyfriend a bright smile and kissed him in front of everyone. Kiku and Yao looked awkward as Feliciano giggled. Alfred huffed.

"Dude, not in public!" he told his brother. Matthew's face was a bright red. Francis looked unashamed.

"Bloody frog! This is not the time!" Arthur snarled.

"Do not fight! We must find a way to get out of here!" Kiku said. "Does anyone know how to drive?"

"I can!" Alfred crowed.

"You are a dangerous driver!" Matthew retorted. "Does anyone besides Al know how?"

"I can aru," Yao spoke up.

"As can I," Ludwig relied. "What are you planning, Kiku?"

Kiku walked over to a cabinet and opened it. Racks of keys hung on nails inside of it. "If we can find a good vehicle, we can get out of here safely. We would be better protected from the dead. We can take one of the busses that the school uses for field trips. It would fit all of us. Myself, Ludwig or Yao could drive us."

"Good idea, mate!" Arthur told Kiku, walking up behind him and observing the rows of keys. "Do you know which ones are for the busses?"

Kiku shook his head slowly. "I have no clue," Kiku relied softly. The Japanese rifled through the keys.

"Hey! There are labels at the back!" Arthur said excitedly. He rifled through them, looking at each label. He frowned. "There are none that say 'bus.' They are all keys to the rooms in the school buildings, it seems. Where would they keep the bus keys?"

"Maybe they are in some of the other cabinets or in the desks, da?" Ivan suggested. The tall Russian started walking around and checking the rest of the cabinets in the room. Ludwig and Francis opened the desk drawers. They still found nothing.

"These are the only keys?" Arthur asked incredulously. He checked all of the labels again. "Would they be kept in the office in the main building?"

"Ve~ I don't want to go back into the school!" Feliciano piped up. He looked terrified at the thought.

"The main building has been invaded by the dead," Alfred agreed.

"It is our best bet," Arthur told him. He shut the cabinet door. "We should go back and check there."

"It will be very dangerous. I do not think that we should all go," Ludwig said. He glanced at Feliciano. "Some should stay here where it is safe."

"No! We should all stay together, Ludwig! We would be safer in groups than we would be alone!" Feliciano squeaked. "Besides, we still need to find my fratello!" Feliciano suddenly gasped and pulled out his cell phone again. "I will call him to see where he is!" Feli pressed the speed dial number for Lovino and held the phone up to his ear nervously. His face fell as Lovino didn't pick up. He called again. His twin still did not answer. Feliciano sniffed as he hung up the phone for the second time. "He didn't answer," he said softly, tears filling his eyes.

Ludwig sighed and pulled Feli into his embrace. "I am sure that your brother will be fine. He is undoubtedly with Antonio. He probably forgot his phone again."

Feliciano sniffed again and Kiku put a hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort the Italian.

"I'm worried about my siblings too, Feliciano. I just have to trust that they are okay aru," Yao said softly. He patted Feliciano's head gently.

Ivan looked over at Yao. "That's right! Yao-Yao has two little siblings, da? Xiang and Mei?"

Yao nodded and pulled the picture that he had taken out of his pocket, showing it to Ivan. "That's correct aru! They are the two on the far end!"

Five people smiled up out of the picture. Ivan frowned and glanced at Kiku. "Why are you here?"

"Yao and I grew up together," Kiku replied, glancing at the picture. He recognized it. They had taken it at the park. Yong-Soo had his arms around Yao, who looked slightly uncomfortable. Kiku stood next to them and Mei and Xiang stood at the far end, Mei hanging off Kiku's arm. Xiang was wearing his usual disinterested expression on his face, but Kiku had actually been smiling for once.

"That's right aru! We need to find the rest of them, don't we?"

"I have a younger brother as well," Arthur said quietly. "He goes to the elementary school. I need to find Peter. I'm sure my elder brothers are safe, so I won't worry about those wankers."

"I'm sure my brother Gilbert is okay, but I would like to see him," Ludwig said.

"And I need to find fratello!" Feliciano piped up again.

"It looks like many of us have family members out there. Once we get out of the school, we should try to find and rescue them as well!" Alfred exclaimed. "But first, we have to find a way to get out of the school. Are we going to search the school office or not?"

"Da! We should hurry up!" Ivan said, gripping his pipe.

"I guess that we are all going together. It would probably be safer that way," Matthew said from behind Alfred.

"Alright," Ludwig said slowly. "We should really get going before more of them show up. I'll go first. Those that can't fight should stay in the center of the group. Alfred, Ivan, and Kiku, you surround the rest."

There were several outraged cries of protest, mainly coming from Yao and Francis.

"I can fight fine aru!" Yao snapped, glaring up at the tall German.

"Oui, as can I! I will not stand there helpless, mon cher!" Francis' blue eyes sparkled dangerously.

"If we want to get out of this alive, then we will all have to work together!" Arthur said. "I also do not want to watch as you all risk your lives. We can all help."

"I agree!" Matthew said in his soft voice.

Ludwig looked helplessly at Feliciano. Feli gave him a hard stare in return. "I am terrified, Ludwig, but I want to help protect everyone," the small Italian said. He clutched at his spear.

Ludwig let out a heavy sigh, defeated. "Alright," he said. "We should get moving while the coast is clear."

Ludwig led the way to the door of the office. He motioned everyone to stay back and opened the door quietly… and came face to face with one of the undead. Ludwig yelped and backed up quickly. The dead man followed the sound of his startled yell. There was a gasp from behind him.

"Scottie!"

Ludwig fended off the red haired student and glanced over his shoulder. Arthur was fighting Alfred's hold on him and was reaching out towards the dead man.

"Scottie, _no!"_ Arthur whispered. Alfred covered Arthur's eyes. Arthur fought hard. "Let me the hell go, Alfred! He's my brother!"

"I'm sorry," Alfred said. His blue eyes were sad as he watched the remains of Arthur's oldest brother.

The red haired man was stumbling towards the sound of his younger brother's cries. A low, dry moan came from his throat. Ludwig pushed the dead man back towards the door with his bat. The walking remains kept trying to get to Arthur, its mouth opening and closing hungrily. Ludwig shuddered with disgust. Arthur's cries had become muffled. Alfred had his hand over Arthur's mouth to stifle his cries so as to not attract any more of the dead. Feliciano had tears in his eyes as he gently laid a small hand on Arthur's shoulder, trying to comfort the Brit. Ludwig guided the dead man outside and around to the side of the office, out of sight of the door. He felt another presence at his back and turned to see that Kiku had followed him out. The Japanese had a saddened look on his face as he watched the dead man carefully. Ludwig sighed and faced Scottie's remains. "I know that you would not want to hurt your little brother," Ludwig said quietly, "so I will make this quick." Scottie stumbled towards the sound of Ludwig's voice. Ludwig raised his bat and brought it down on his head.

Kiku kept lookout while Ludwig dragged the body over to the cherry tree that stood beside the staff office. He propped Scottie up against the trunk of the tree and stripped him of his jacket. He laid it over the man's broken head and turned back to Kiku, who was watching him quietly. The two walked back to the staff office.

Arthur was sobbing into Alfred's chest, clutching at his leather bomber jacket. Alfred was petting his blonde hair as Arthur cried.

"We need to get moving," Ludwig said quietly. "Arthur, Scottie is at peace again. I'm sorry that happened."

Arthur sniffed hard and tried to stop crying, but a glance at Ludwig's bloody bat sent him spiraling down into hysterical sobs again. Feliciano was also crying, his face in his hands. Ludwig drew Feliciano into a hug.

"Mon cher, I understand you are upset, but we need to get moving or we will all end up like your brother," Francis said quietly. "You need to find your younger brother, do you not?"

It took Arthur another few minutes, but at the mention of Peter he valiantly tried to force back his tears. He stumbled into the bathroom and washed his face in the sink. When he returned, he looked a lot better, though his face was still ashen. His emerald eyes were determined. He clutched his broom tightly. "Let's go," he said in a shaky, but determined, voice.

Ludwig nodded and looked over the group of friends. "Is everyone ready?" Kiku stepped up and drew his sword. Yao hoisted his wok up on his shoulder. Ivan readied his pipe and Feli, Arthur, and Alfred clutched their weapons. Francis stepped up and stood beside Matthew. "Alright! Let's go!" Ludwig said. "To the school!"

After checking outside to make sure that the coat was clear of all of the dead, the group of friends set off together in the direction of the school.

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**Please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Yay, new chapter! Again, I apologize for the long wait. I'm working on several stories at once. I hope you enjoy this one! Reviews are much appreciated!**

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The dead patrolled the outside of the school building. Ludwig knew that there were more inside. He clutched his bat as he observed the front of the building from his spot under some sakura trees.

"How are we going to get in?" Yao asked. "There are so many…"

"Yes, there seem to be too many to kill," Alfred agreed. "I doubt that we could push them all out of the way, either."

"We have to move silently," Kiku told them. "We won't have to start a fight if we go carefully and quietly. They can't seem to see us, but they are definitely attracted to sound. We only have to fight the ones that get in our way."

"Killing them might make too much noise. We should just push the ones that get in our way to the side. If we make even one little noise, it will attract them," Ludwig said.

"There still seem to be too many of them," Francis said slowly. "I doubt that we could knock all of them out of our way. Can we go in another entrance?"

"They are probably all like this," Alfred told him. "When Arthur and I were leaving, dead people were at every entrance. More of them have probably wandered farther into the school. We should also look for any survivors while we are in there."

"We might not have time for that," Ivan told him.

"I'm the hero! I can't just leave helpless people alone in there!" Alfred whined.

"If they have survived this long aru, it means that they are not helpless or they have someone protecting them aru," Yao said. "If we meet any on our way we can help them, but I do not think that we should go out of our way to look for survivors. We should spend as little time in the school as possible."

"That is messed up, Yao!" Alfred snapped. "Why do you not want to help people? That is inhuman!"

Yao glared back at him. "I have two younger siblings that I need to find aru," he said in a dangerous voice. "I will be no help to them if I get turned into one of these mindless freaks aru! If you want to be stupid and get bitten, be my guest! Don't drag the rest of us down with you aru!"

"Stop fighting!" Matthew told them. "We need to work together! Al, Yao is right. We can't search the entire school for survivors. Yao, I think that you two should compromise. We can search a little, but we do need to get out quickly. It will be extremely dangerous if we linger there for too long!"

Alfred and Yao glared at each other for a moment more before looking away. "Fine aru. We can compromise," Yao said quietly.

"Yeah, I guess that can work," Alfred said slowly.

"Good. Right now, we need to find a way to get past the dead and make our way to the school office," Ludwig told them. "Kiku is right: we need to be as quiet as possible. We would be in big trouble if they all attacked us. We will go slowly and take care not to attract any of them. If one gets in your way, push it aside. Don't try to fight them."

"I don't think that we should try to go in this entrance," Francis said again. "If they are all like this, we should try to find another way into the school. Any suggestions?"

There was silence for a few moments. Matthew finally spoke up. "What about through a…"

"How about a window?" Alfred interrupted excitedly. "As long as there are no dead people nearby, we can go through a window!" Matthew looked put out at having his idea stolen, but didn't say anything.

"That could work," Ludwig said slowly, "as long as we don't have to break a window to get in. We can't make any noise."

"What if there are dead in front of the windows as well? How would we get to them?" Feliciano asked quietly.

"We'll find out," Ludwig told him. He took a deep breath and tightened his grip on his bat. "We should get moving now. Follow me!"

Ludwig set off around the side of the school, keeping under the cherry trees. He kept a close eye out for any of the dead. Feliciano crept close by his side, his brown eyes darting around nervously.

They crept around the side of the school. There were still many dead students and teachers roaming around on the sides, but not as many as in front of the doors. Ludwig observed the situation for a few moments before turning back to the group.

"A few of us should go up to the school. The rest, stay here. I want to observe the situation inside before we decide on anything. Ivan and Alfred, will you come with me? The rest of you, keep on lookout! Don't let any sneak up from behind!"

"What will you do, Ludwig?" Francis asked.

"We'll look through the windows and see what it is like inside the school. We need to find a deserted classroom if we want to get into the school through a window." Ludwig ran a hand through his slicked back hair. "The three of us have less chance of being detected than if we all go. We'll just observe the situation and come back here."

"Alright," Alfred said. Ivan nodded, gripping his pipe.

"Let's move out" Ludwig said, motioning Alfred and Ivan to come with him. The three men set of towards the school.

They stopped at the bottom of the hill. The grass in front of them was taken over by the dead. Ludwig quickly counted fourteen patrolling this side of the school. It was silent except for the occasional wheezing moan or stumbling footstep. Ludwig observed them for a while, trying to determine the best route around them.

Ivan suddenly stepped out from around him, the big man walking silently into the crowd. He kept a close watch around him as he slowly made his way forward. Ludwig glanced back at Alfred, who shrugged, and followed the Russian.

The small group slowly made their way through the ranks of the dead, carefully dodging around the animated corpses. Alfred occasionally pushed some out of their way with his longer broom, but they didn't kill any of them, although Ivan visibly wanted to, looking longingly at the dead students around him. Still, the man had sense enough not to endanger himself by killing any of them.

One of the dead walked dangerously close to Ludwig and he froze, staring into the sightless eyes. Alfred pushed it to the side and the student moved on. Ludwig let out a silent breath and followed Alfred.

They finally reached the school building. They crept to the window and looked inside the classroom. Ludwig shuddered at what he saw. There were several dead students feeding in there. Blood was everywhere in the room, on the floor and covering the clothes of the dead students. A gray arm lay motionless outside of the circle of feeding students. A river of blood was soaking the floor around the grotesque gathering.

Ludwig motioned to the others to try the next window. Alfred's face was deathly pale, his blue eyes watering slightly. Ludwig pushed him slightly and he moved over to the next window, but did not look inside. Steeling himself, Ludwig glanced inside.

There were two surviving students in this one. They were huddled together, a boy and a girl, clutching each other. Both of them were crying. Ludwig glanced behind him to make sure that there were no dead students anywhere close to him. Several of them roamed close to their spot. Alfred was watching them warily, gripping his broom. Ludwig tapped him on the shoulder and leaned in close to his ear.

"There are two survivors in there," he informed the American. Alfred whirled around and glanced into the room, relaxing when he saw the couple. "I need you to clear the area of the dead. I'm going to try to get their attention."

Alfred nodded and stepped forward, guiding the dead away from the window. When the area was clear Ludwig rapped softly on the window.

The two students started violently and whirled to look at the window. Ludwig waved to them to show them he was alive. He calmly motioned to the window and raised his hands slowly trying to tell them to open the window. The boy shook his head and backed up. _There are dead out there_, he mouthed. Ludwig motioned him forward. The boy hesitated, but walked forward. The girl kept close to his heels.

_You can escape this way_ Ludwig mouthed. He pointed behind him to sow that the area was clear of the dead. The couple looked out of the window and put their heads together conversing quietly. Ludwig waited impatiently. Finally, the boy turned to the window and unlocked the bolt. He pushed up on the window slowly. The window started to squeak and he stopped abruptly, backing up and casting glances around him. The squeak was loud enough to draw several of the dead students to them and Alfred pushed them away with his broom. Ivan readied his pipe just in case. Ludwig let out a silent curse and thought hard.

There was now a small open space at the bottom of the window. He knelt down and put his mouth to it. "Can you open it slowly?" he asked the students inside.

The boy came forward again and put his mouth to the crack too. "Don't you dare open it anymore!" he hissed. "You'll just attract _them!"_ The girl nodded her agreement.

"We can push them away," Ludwig said.

"There are more outside this room," the boy said. "They will hear!"

"If we don't open this window, you will be trapped in there," Ludwig told them. "We need to get in, and you need to get out. We can help each other. There are a group of survivors on that hill," he pointed to where Feliciano and the others waited, "we can all escape together."

"Why do you want to come in?" the girl asked. Her voice was terrified.

"We are looking for something" Ludwig replied.

The girl shook her head. "You are crazy!" she whispered. "There are more of those monsters in the hall outside of this room. You all will get bitten if you come in here!"

"This is our only chance," Ludwig said. "You two can come with us, but you have to help us get this window open."

The boy shook his head vigorously and pulled the girl away from the window. "Hanako is right. You guys are crazy!" he whispered furiously. "I will not let you endanger us!"

"I'm trying to help you!" Ludwig said.

"Shall I break the window open?" Ivan asked. He stepped up to the window, showing the scared couple inside his pipe. "Help us open it quietly or I will break it open. It will alert those things to your presence. I can assure you, the three of us won't die. I can't say the same for you."

"Bastard! Don't you dare!" Alfred snapped.

"I will," Ivan said coldly. "I plan on getting out of here and they are in my way." The intimidating Russian shot the two inside an icy cold glare.

Grinding his teeth, the boy stepped up to the window again. He met Ivan's glare with one of his own before hooking his hands underneath the window frame. Ludwig hooked his hands under it too. He met the boy's eyes. "Slowly and carefully," he murmured. The boy nodded his agreement. The girl, Hanako, stood behind him and shot a worried glance at the door. Ludwig tuned and met Alfred's eyes. "This will attract some of them," he said, "be prepared." He turned back to the boy. "On three. One, two, three."

*SQUEEEAALLL*

Ludwig had not been prepared for the noise that the window made. Every one of the dead swiveled around at the sound. Ludwig gave a loud curse and brandished his bat. He heard a pounding coming from inside of the room and Hanako gasped. Ludwig moved out of the way of the window. It was open enough to allow the two inside outside. He motioned for the two to crawl outside. The couple's eyes opened wide as the dead started to converge on the three outside. Hanako shook her head and shrank towards her friend. The source of the pounding that Ludwig heard made itself known. The dead in the hall were trying to get into the classroom. The boy's eyes darted from the window to the door.

The first wave of the dead attack was easily fended off. The three made a circle around the opened window. As he started fending off the dead, Ludwig felt a tug on his jacket. The boy was trying to shove Hanako through the window. Ludwig moved forward enough for the girl to get out. She slipped out of the window just as the door to the classroom burst open. She turned around and pulled on her friend's hand. The boy seemed to have frozen at the sight of the dead.

"Saito, come on! Hanako shrieked.

Saito turned at the sound of her voice and tried to slip through the window, but was yanked back by the dead. Ludwig turned and brought his bat down hard on its arm, breaking the hold on Saito, who slipped through the window. Hanako threw herself at his, sobbing.

Ivan and Alfred, meanwhile, had cleared a path through the dead that were attacking. Ludwig tapped Saito on the shoulder and the two followed him as they slipped through the crowd of attacking dead.

Francis and Arthur had run to the bottom of the hill when they saw the dead attacking. "Well, I guess the window option is out," Francis said, observing the dead at the window.

"Not necessarily. We just have to wait for them to get bored and unsuspicious again," Ludwig said. "Then we can try again."

"You guys are all crazy for wanting to get back inside that hell hole!" Saito snapped. "Thank you for getting us out of there, but Hanako and I will not be a part of whatever you are planning."

"Where will you go?" Ludwig asked them.

Saito hesitated, darting a glance back at Hanako. "I don't know. Somewhere far from here, where _those things_ can't get to us." Hanako nodded vigorously, taking Saito's hand and squeezing it tightly.

"You can stay with us!" Alfred told them. "We can all escape together!"

"You are going on a suicide mission," Saito responded bluntly. "I won't put Hanako in danger. Thank you again for helping us, but we must leave you now." He held out a hand and shook Ludwig's and Alfred's, avoiding Ivan.

Ludwig sighed. "Good luck," he said, knowing that he could not stop the two.

Saito nodded and ran off, holding Hanako's hand. Ludwig watched them until they disappeared into some cherry trees. He trudged up the hill, the others following him.

Feliciano greeted him when he reached the top. "That was so scary!" Feli whispered, clinging to Ludwig.

"Ja, but we are all safe now," Ludwig said. "As safe as we can be, at least."

"Who were those people?" Yao asked him curiously.

"Some survivors who were hiding in an abandoned classroom. It's not so abandoned now," Ludwig said tiredly.

"What do we do now?" Arthur asked.

Ludwig turned to face the school, watching the dead around the window. "Now, we wait," he said, sitting down on the ground. That window might be their only entrance into the school. They would have to wait and hope the dead got bored and wandered off somewhere else.

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**Please review!**


	9. Chapter 9

It took another thirty minutes for the dead at the window to get bored and start to wander off. Ludwig sighed as he watched the last one stumble away from the window.

"This isn't going to be easy," he said. "There are some in the classroom as well now. I don't know how many."

"Do you think the ones in the classroom have wondered away too?" Feli asked him.

"I doubt that," Kiku answered him. "Out here, there are no barriers to hinder them from wandering away. In the classroom, there is only one door, and they can't seem to see. We will have to kill all of them in the classroom before we can enter the school."

"The window isn't open all the way, either," Ludwig said. "Someone small will have to go through the window and into the classroom."

"I will go," Yao piped up.

"No!" Kiku said firmly. "I can do it."

Yao shot him an annoyed glare. "I am not defenseless, you know!" he said. "I can fight too aru!"

"How about you both go in?" Francis suggested. "Two people can get the job done faster."

Kiku looked helplessly at Yao. "I don't want you to risk your life," he said.

"I'm risking my life by just being alive now," Yao snapped. "Besides, you are risking your life too aru!"

"I can handle them," Kiku told him.

"So can I aru!" Yao responded.

"Stop fighting, da?" Ivan told them. "You can both go in."

"We will probably have to kill all the ones outside in this area and all the ones in the classroom and in earshot. We need to get the window all the way open so that we can all fit inside," Alfred said. "Some of us being fatter than others." Alfred shot a pointed look at Ivan, who glared back.

"Like _you _need to talk, stupid git!" Arthur snapped.

Alfred opened his mouth to protest, but Ludwig held up a hand. "Be quiet. There is no time to fight. We are on a mission," he ordered. Alfred and Ivan shot each other one last glare before looking away. Ludwig stood up and stretched. "Let's get moving. The sooner we get out of the school, the better."

"Would it really be better?" Matthew asked. "According to that news cast we saw, it looks like the whole city is like this."

"You are right. We are probably not safe anywhere we go. But we will survive, none the less," Ludwig said firmly. "We may find a defensible place outside the school. There is no such place within campus grounds that we can be sure of."

"Alright then," Matthew said, still unsure. He opened the bag at his waist and slipped his white bear inside, fastening the strap.

"Let's go." Ludwig led the way down the slope towards the main school building. He stopped at the bottom of the hill and glanced back to the others. "Kill all of them. We don't want to attract them when we open the window. Just be quiet about it." Ludwig noticed how Ivan's violet eyes gleamed and he clutched his pipe, his smile becoming sinister. Kiku drew his sword as quietly as possible. Alfred and Arthur readied their brooms and Yao clutched his wok. Francis sighed.

"I shall have to find a more suitable weapon for killing, it seems," he said.

"Don't leave that branch. It will come in handy for pushing them away," Ludwig reasoned. Francis nodded and stepped closer to Matthew.

"I don't like feeling helpless, either," Matthew told Francis quietly. He took Francis' hand and squeezed gently.

"Let's go already," Ivan said impatiently. Without waiting for a reply, he made his way to the nearest body and smartly bashed its head in. Blood splattered on his uniform. He quickly moved to the next one.

Kiku, Ludwig, and Yao made their way to a cluster of them, readying their weapons, while Arthur and Alfred started picking off individuals wandering randomly.

Ludwig tried to kill them as quietly as possible, but when he bashed the first victim's head in, several turned in his direction at the cracking sound. Kiku took out two with his sword and Yao killed another one. His wok made a dull clanging sound, which drew the remaining three corpses towards him. Kiku, Ludwig, and Yao each killed one more. When they all lay truly dead on the ground, Ludwig turned to survey the situation.

The other three had succeeded in taking out the rest of the dead. Everyone's clothes were bloody. Ludwig looked down at his uniform and winced. Maybe they could get a change of clothes from their dorms when they had a chance. He motioned to Feliciano, Francis, and Matthew, who had stood watch as they finished off the dead in the area. All of them met a short distance away from the half-opened window.

"Good work," Ludwig said. "I'm going to check on the situation in the classroom. Kiku, come with me." The Japanese man nodded and followed him over to the window.

The situation inside was worse than he thought. There were around thirty or so dead bodies walking around in the classroom. He had no idea how many were in the hall. He shot a glance at Kiku to gauge his reaction. The Japanese was chewing on his lower lip as he observed the classroom. Ludwig pulled him back away from the window.

"What do you think?" Ludwig asked him quietly. The others joined them.

"There are too many for Yao and me to fight alone," Kiku said simply. "We do not know how many are in the hall, either."

"I'll go too," Arthur said. "I can probably fit in there."

"You probably can," Alfred agreed. "You're tiny, dude!"

Arthur shot the American a seething glare and muttered something under his breath.

"You've got a good arm," Ludwig said. "But I'm not sure the three of you would be enough."

"There is also the problem of them being attracted to sound aru," Yao said. "We would make noise when we kill them. They would all come at us at once aru."

"Can't we just force the window open and wait until they all get bored again?" Francis suggested.

"The quicker we get out of here the better," Feliciano said quietly. Ludwig nodded in agreement.

"He's right. We cannot delay. We have already wasted enough time waiting for them to stop attacking the window." Ludwig sighed and passed a hand over his eyes. He was starting to get very tired. He hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. They would have to find some way to get food and fresh water… Ludwig abruptly jerked his mind back to their current situation. They could deal with those problems later. Right now, they needed to find some way to get inside that school!

"I'll go in first and start killing the ones closest to the window," Kiku was saying. "My sword is pretty silent, and I can lower the bodies to the ground once I have killed them. That way, I could take at least some of them out before the other two come in. Though effective, your methods of killing make much more noise."

Yao grudgingly agreed, his amber eyes worried. "Will you be okay by yourself aru?" he asked, taking a hold of Kiku's sleeve.

Kiku smiled at him. "Of course I will, Yao-san. Please, do not worry yourself." Kiku shot a glance at Ludwig, who nodded.

"Be careful," Ludwig told him. Kiku nodded and moved back over to the window. The others followed close behind him.

Kiku observed the situation in the classroom for a few minutes before bending down and agilely slipping through the window.

Kiku looked around for the nearest body. There was a girl about three feet away from him. She was facing him. Perfect. Kiku took a step forward and skillfully drove his katana through her right eye. The girl dropped and Kiku caught her, carefully lowering her to the floor. He turned around and did the same for a teacher who was approaching from behind. His katana claimed five more victims before Yao slid in the opened window and stood aside for Arthur to climb through. Yao tapped Kiku on the shoulder so that the Japanese man would know where they were before moving into the room.

Yao's wok made a muted clang as he killed another teacher. Only one of the dead students turned towards him. He faced her and quickly finished her off. Arthur likewise had little trouble with the noise his broom handle was making. Slowly, one dead body at a time, the three finished their work. When the last student fell to Arthur's broom, the Brit sank to the floor and stretched his arms. The other two also shook the soreness out of their limbs before moving back to the window.

"The hall too?" Kiku asked. The Japanese student was breathing heavily and sweat was running down his temples. Ludwig nodded an affirmative.

Yao led the way out into the hall and looked around. There were more dead students and teachers wandering the halls, but not as many as there were in the classroom. Yao counted eleven. He turned to face Kiku and Arthur. "Should we kill them all aru?" he whispered.

Kiku observed the dead before shaking his head. "Only the ones that are within earshot of that window opening," he replied.

Arthur was examining his broom handle. "It is dented pretty badly," he said quietly. "I'm afraid that it might break off if I keep fighting with it."

"There is another closet down there aru," Yao said, pointing down the left hall where about seven of the dead were on patrol. "Maybe you can get another one there. But we would have to kill all of _them_ first."

"We just have to hope that it holds up for the time being," Kiku said. "As for the ones we need to kill, I think only five or six of them are within earshot. We should take out the closest ones now." He stepped forward and ran his sword through another student's eye. Yao noticed how Kiku's arms were trembling. He must be exhausted. Yao cracked a teacher's skull open with his wok. The sooner they could get out of the school, the sooner they could rest for a time.

Arthur suddenly chuckled. Yao turned around. "What the hell is funny aru?" he hissed.

Arthur was facing off with the remains of a middle aged balding man with a brown suit and glasses. "It's about time someone finally sacked the headmaster," Arthur said darkly. He brought his broom down on the man's head. The headmaster fell to the ground.

Yao raised an eyebrow. "Revenge for all the detentions he gave you aru?" he said flatly.

"No, revenge for all the hell he gave me in general," Arthur replied. "I swear, he was evil!"

"He only gave you hell because you were a delinquent at one point," Kiku said bluntly. He cast a second glance down at the man on the floor. "Though, I agree that he could be an arsehole occasionally."

"Now is not the time aru!" Yao said. He brought his wok down on the last girl's head. He leaned against the wall, panting hard. _I'm getting old,_ he thought, feeling the pain in his arms and back from all this strenuous work. He stretched and cracked his back. He quickly looked around to make sure none of the dead had heard. When none of the remaining ones turned around, he gave a sigh of relief.

"Alright, let's go let the others in," Arthur said. Kiku and Yao followed him back into the classroom.

The others were still waiting outside the window. Kiku nodded at Ludwig to tell him they had all been taken care of. He sank down in a desk gratefully.

Ludwig turned to the group behind him. "Alright, they got everyone within earshot, it seems. Alfred, help me open the window." When Alfred stepped up beside him, Ludwig said, "Don't hold back, even when it starts to squeal. We need to get it open fast." Alfred nodded to show his agreement and they took their stance. Ludwig quietly counted to three before pushing up on the window with Alfred.

The window made another high-pitched squeal when it opened. Ludwig winced at the sound, but they had succeeded in opening the window all of the way. Ludwig turned and looked around them quickly. No dead were in sight outside.

He heard a gasp from the classroom. Two dead students had wandered inside. Yao quickly swung his wok and killed one. Arthur brought his broom down on another's head, but the handle finally broke from the strain. The man kept coming, reaching out with dead, grey hands for Arthur.

Ludwig had never seen Alfred move so fast. Within seconds, the American was in the classroom and bringing his own broom down on the man's head. The student finally dropped and lay still.

Arthur was breathing hard. "Thank you," he said softly, looking up at the tall American.

Alfred's smile seemed to light up the room. "It's my job as a hero!" he said, grinning down at Arthur.

Arthur turned slightly red and muttered something unintelligible. Alfred just beamed at him.

The others climbed into the once again deserted classroom. Ludwig quickly walked to the door and looked out into the hall. He knew where they were. It was the mathematics hallway. The headmaster's office, where the keys hopefully were, was up three flights of stairs and down two more hallways. It would be no easy task to get there with the school being taken over. There were a few more of the dead wandering down the hall that he could see, but he had no idea the situation on the upper floors. They would have to move fast. He glanced back into the classroom. All of the others had sunk down into desks, exhausted. Ludwig could feel the weariness in his own muscles. He badly wanted to join them and sit down for a while, but they had a job to do. It was a matter of life and death now.

"Come on," he called softly. The others got painfully to their feet and moved to join him at the door. "The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can escape." He looked at Feliciano. "And the sooner we can find our loved ones," he said quietly. Feliciano nodded solemnly, a determined look on his face. Ludwig glanced at the room number of the classroom. Math Lab 2b. He committed it to memory so that he would know how to get out.

Ludwig led the way out into the hall. He took a moment to recall where the stairs leading to the upper floors were. _Down this hallway, turn right, and down that hallway too…_

Ludwig crept forward. They would be passing three dead students. One was on the floor about ten feet away, feeding on a younger boy. The boy was lying motionless. The other two were stumbling around near the end of the hallway. When he passed the girl, he took a second to kill her. He also smashed the boy's head in, just in case. He approached the other two with caution. They were in the middle of the hallway and close together, effectively blocking the way. They would have to kill them. He looked around to request help from someone, but Ivan passed him. He ended both students quickly, getting his uniform more bloodied. Ludwig shrugged and followed the Russian as he turned right.

In contrast to the previous hall, this one was deserted. There was only one dead body walking around in this hallway. The large group crept into the new hallway. The reason for the hallway being deserted became clear. Around fifteen or so dead students crowded into one classroom they passed. There were several weak, pained cries and pleas coming from inside the room. Ludwig wished he could end the living students' pain, but he clutched Feli's hand and walked past the door. There was nothing anyone could do to save them. Ludwig took his frustration out on the lone student in the hallway, savagely bashing its head in. Feliciano winced as a spray of blood dirtied his uniform even more. Ludwig immediately felt bad and squeezed Feliciano's hand tightly to silently say "sorry." Feli squeezed it back.

They finally reached the staircase leading to the upper floors. The door was closed. Ludwig listened intently for a second before attempting to open it. It was locked.

Ludwig silently cursed. Of all the times it could be locked…

"Should we kick it down?" Francis asked.

"I don't know if that is possible," Alfred responded, surveying the solid steel door.

"Besides, we might attract some of the things aru," Yao said.

Ivan calmly took Ludwig's spot at the door and took a hold of the handle, testing the lock. He suddenly jerked his hand down sharply. The sound of the lock breaking cut through the air, making everyone jump. Ivan pushed the door open and checked in the stairwell. The coast was clear.

Ludwig let out a breath. "Good job," he told Ivan.

"Um, guys?"

"It was no trouble," Ivan said nonchalantly.

"Guys?"

"It seems the coast is clear for now. We should still hurry and be on alert," Ludwig reminded everyone.

"LISTEN TO ME!" Matthew yelled, startling everyone.

"Dude! Keep your voice down!" Alfred whisper-yelled, "They will hear you!"

"Too late for that," Matthew said, pointing down the hall. Some of the dead students from the classroom had heard the sound of the lock breaking and were heading straight towards them. More were streaming out of the room.

"Uh-oh," Alfred said. "Time to run, guys."

Ludwig held the door open and ushered everyone inside. By the time Francis, the last person, had entered, the dead students were already at the door. Ludwig closed it in their faces. A pounding started on the door, making it open slightly. Ludwig paled and pressed against the door, keeping it closed. Alfred quickly stepped up and held the door with him.

"We can't lock it!" Yao gasped. "They'll come in here aru!" He looked around himself. "There must be something that we can bar the door with aru!"

"I don't see anything!" Feliciano squeaked, looking around frantically.

"We'll have to run," Alfred said. The American winced. "Damn, they're strong!"

Ivan put a hand on the door as well, trying to keep it closed. Ludwig braced his back against it, feeling the strength of the pounds wrack through his body through the metal.

"Alfred is right," Ludwig said. "The rest of you, start up the stairs. Keep alert to your surroundings." A particularly hard shove almost made him lose his balance. "Go!" he ordered the others. The group started running up the stairs. Once they were almost a flight up, Ludwig said, "Are you two ready to let go?" Both Ivan and Alfred nodded, sweat pouring down their faces. "Alright, on three." Ludwig quickly counted and they let go, dashing up the stairs. Behind them, the door slammed open and the dead started pooling into the stairwell. Ludwig didn't turn around to see if they could climb. He urged the others to hurry and tried not to lose his balance. If one of them tripped, they were done for!

Two flights of stairs later, Ludwig finally called a halt. Yao sat down hard on a step, putting his head on his knees. Kiku sank down beside him. Everyone was panting heavily, their adrenaline starting to drain away and weariness setting back in. Ludwig glanced back down the stairwell. Several bodies were slowly climbing the stairs. Others were crawling. He didn't bother to count how many were down there. They would not be going down this staircase again.

"Rest up for a time," Ludwig said before practically collapsing where he stood. Feliciano scooted over to him.

"We need to get water and food," he said. "It will be awful if we escaped and then died of exhaustion."

"Maybe there will be food in the office," Arthur suggested. "I know there is a water fountain near the office too."

"But what if a lot of _them_ are there?" Feliciano asked. "What will we do then?"

"We'll see," Ludwig responded. He forced himself to stand up. "Let's go."

The door to leading to the third floor corridor was closed, but not locked. Ludwig pressed his ear to the metal, but it did not yield any sign of what might be behind it. If there were a lot of dead people on the other side of the door and they invaded the stairwell, they would be trapped between two groups of attacking corpses. There would be nowhere to escape to. Ludwig glanced over at the rest of the group.

"I can't tell if there are any on the other side," he said. "If there are, and they attack, we would be trapped."

"We can't stay in here forever," Kiku said. "It is our only chance of escape." He glanced back down the stairwell. Some of the dead had made it to the second floor. "We have to risk it," he said quietly.

Ludwig took a deep breath and steeled himself. He really did not want to fight anymore. He just wanted to rest. He glanced down at Feli, who wore a look of nervousness on his face. He stared at the door warily. Ludwig straightened up. No matter how tired he was, he would make sure Feliciano got out of this. He refused to let the little Italian die. Ludwig approached the door again and put his hand on the handle. Kiku stepped up beside him, prepared to take out any who might come through the door. The Japanese man had a look of determination on his face. Ludwig took in a deep, shuddering breath before slowly pushing the door open.

Kiku glanced out into the hall and a look of relief suffused his face. He stuck his head back into the stairwell. "The coast is mostly clear," he informed everyone. "There doesn't seem to be any up here yet. There are many bodies in the hall though, so I can't be sure. We will have to be careful and alert."

Ludwig held the door open again and everyone else trooped out into the hall. Ludwig stepped out himself and closed the door as quietly as he could.

Sure enough, quite a few mangled corpses littered the hall, although none were moving. They must be more trampled students who got caught in the panic. Ludwig shuddered as he looked into the bloodied face of a young girl lying a few feet away from him. Her glassy eyes were open and a look of terror and pain was frozen on her face. He forced himself to look away. At least, these students didn't have to face the monsters that had taken over the campus.

Feliciano was looking with horror at some of the mangled bodies until Ludwig put a large hand firmly over his eyes. Everyone was quiet in the prescience of these dead, even though there was no chance of them rising again. So much life, literally stamped out so young… These students never got a chance to escape. They will never have a chance to see their families again. Their families might be dead too, or they could be alive and never know what happened to their loved one. And since the world seemed to have gone to hell, they would likely lie here in this cold hallway forever, abandoned and alone, as their bones crumbled to dust. No one would know who they were; no one would care who they were. Ludwig wished that there was something that he could do for them, but he knew that there was nothing. He had the living to take care of.

Ludwig waved to get everyone's attention. The school office was two corridors away. This floor seemed to be clear of the walking dead, but he couldn't be sure. He gripped his bat and pulled Feliciano close to his side. He led the way as they set off in the direction of the staff office, leaving the nameless dead bodies behind.


	10. Chapter 10

**I realized that this is chapter ten and they still haven't managed to escape the school. This is probably going to be a long fic. I had this chapter planned out, but decided to combine two chapters into one to speed it up. This fic will still probably be very long.**

**Enjoy and please review!**

* * *

The third floor wasn't quite deserted. A few dead bodies patrolled the next hallway they came too. The group could easily dodge past them and not have to kill any of them, but a new problem presented itself. One of the dead students stood guard in front of a water fountain.

At the thought of getting fresh water, Ludwig's mouth became even dryer. His eyes fixated on the fountain. They would have to kill the four or so dead bodies in this hall to get to it, however, and all of them were exhausted. Besides, Ludwig was quite tired of killing.

Ludwig couldn't believe that it had only been a few hours since this whole mess began. It wasn't even lunch period yet. Still, Ludwig had never been so famished in his life. He could tell by the looks on his friends' faces that they were just as tired as he was. The adrenaline combined with the fear was enough to tire anyone out, never mind having to break their former classmates' skulls.

Ludwig pulled back and motioned everyone back down the hall. "Okay, there are not that many dead bodies here. We can easily take them out. I know that I said we need to get out of here as quickly as possible, but we need to get to that water fountain." There were fervent nods of agreement all around.

"We need food too," Alfred pointed out. As if on cue, his stomach made a loud grumbling sound and he winced. "We also need to rest a little while. I can barely move my arms."

"We can't rest," Ludwig said. "If we want to survive this, we need to get out of here as quickly as possible." He felt like a broken record: repeating the same thing over and over again.

"Right now, we all need to get some of that water," Arthur said.

"Agreed, for once," Francis replied.

"Do we really have to kill any more people?" Matthew's quiet voice asked. Ludwig almost didn't hear him. "I'm tired of watching people die."

"Dude, they aren't people anymore!" Alfred told him. "People just don't start eating other people. We have to kill them so that they can't hurt anyone else!" Despite his words, his cerulean eyes watched the once-humans with pity. He obviously didn't want to kill anyone else either.

"They used to be," Matthew responded.

"Exactly: they _used to be._ Do you want to spare them and put other _living_ people in danger, or do you want to make it out of this alive?" Ludwig's voice sounded harsh even to his own ears, but it had the desired effect. Matthew shut up and looked at the floor. "Good. Now, let's go."

Ludwig crept up on the first dead body that he saw and lifted his bloodstained bat. At that moment, there was a loud clatter from behind him. Ludwig jumped and whirled, his bat still lifted above his head. Feliciano gasped.

"Ludwig!" The Italian pointed behind Ludwig. Ludwig turned and smashed the head of the student who was reaching for him. The others had turned around and were making their way towards the group. Alfred snatched up the broom head that had fallen from his weapon with wide eyes. Ivan ran forward and smashed another advancing student. Blood stained the walls of the hallway as the student crumpled to the ground and didn't rise, bleeding profusely from his cracked skull. Bits of bone littered the floor. A door at the end of the hallway slammed open and more dead teachers poured from it. It was the door of the faculty office. Ludwig remembered the frantic broadcast that had caused the mass panic earlier. This is what had become of them.

"Retreat!" Ludwig bellowed, motioning back down the hall. He paused to beat back an advancing student before grabbing Ivan's arm and pulling the Russian after the others. _Damn!_

Ludwig could feel adrenaline running through his veins, urging him on. He couldn't count how many times he had felt that adrenaline rush tear through his body in the last few hours alone. He could barely feel his feet as he retreated down the hall after his friends. He felt his need for water again but ignored it.

They ran down the next hall and turned a corner before stopping. It wasn't even a long run. Arthur leaned against the wall and promptly sank to the ground, trembling. Yao joined him.

"We can't keep this up, Ludwig," Francis panted. "Maybe we should just try to leave the school without a bus."

"We need all the protection we can get," Kiku responded, although he had sunk to the floor beside Yao. Despite his words, the Japanese student looked like he was ready to abandon the bus idea as well.

Ludwig let out a heavy sigh, rubbing his temples. He looked around the bend in the corridor. Some of the dead students had stumbled around into the corridor they had just left. He opened his mouth to speak.

"We can't abandon the bus plan!" It was Feliciano who spoke. "We'll be a lot safer inside a bus than if we were on foot outside. It will be harder for them to get inside and kill us. I think that we should follow Ludwig's plan." The Italian's brown eyes were hard. He moved so that he was standing by Ludwig's side.

The German was touched by the little Italian's words and he put an arm around his shoulders. "Thank you, Feli," he said softly, earning a blinding grin in response.

"Well, we have to move fast," Alfred said quietly. The American was peeking out into the corridor. "They're coming."

Arthur groaned but got painfully to his feet. Yao and Kiku followed suit. Alfred put a hand on Arthur's elbow to hold him steady.

"We will have to go through them to get to the office," Francis pointed out. "There is only one way to get to the office, and that is back the way we came. We can get to the water fountain that way too."

"How many of them are there?" Yao asked, looking out from around the corner. His lips moved silently as he counted. "At least ten," he answered his own question. "We can all take one."

"Some of us don't have weapons anymore," Arthur reminded him.

"Six of us do," Ludwig said. "We can each take one." He glanced over at Feliciano. "Will you be alright?" he asked. The Italian was trembling.

Feliciano nodded. "I'll be fine," he assured the German.

"Stay close by me, Ita-chan," Kiku told him. He touched Feliciano's hand. Feliciano nodded and stepped closer to the smaller man, gripping his spear so hard his knuckles turned white.

"Hurry," Francis whispered. "They're here!" Just as he said that, the first of the dead appeared around the corner.

Ivan lunged forward and cracked its skull. Blood spattered the walls as the girl slumped to the floor. Several turned the corner, attracted by the sound. Ivan bashed another one while Alfred killed the next one. Another one stepped up behind Alfred. Arthur barked a warning to the American. Alfred pivoted and tried to get his weapon up in time, but the teacher that he was about to kill grabbed him. Before it could bite him, Feliciano hit its head. The hit wasn't hard enough. Arthur yelled as the former teacher made to bite Alfred again, but Ludwig got to it first. Alfred winced as the teacher's blood splashed on his face. He backed up and hurriedly cleaned his face and glasses.

Kiku took out one while Yao watched his back, fending off two more. Ivan moved to help him. Finally, the battle was over, the dead slumped on the floor. Pools of blood covered the floor.

"We've got to get that blood off of you," Arthur told Alfred. The Brit sounded worried.

"You're right," Kiku agreed. The Japanese student was covered in blood as well. They all were.

"Let's go," Ludwig ordered. They traipsed back into the hallway and hurried down it. Turning the corner, they saw the hallway blessedly deserted; the water fountain unguarded.

"Alfred, you wash that blood off first," Ludwig said. Alfred approached the fountain and quickly washed his face and hair. Blood turned the water bright red as it was washed into the drain. When the blood was off, Alfred finally had a long drink of water before standing aside for someone else.

Ludwig went last. As soon as the water touched his lips, he almost whimpered in relief. When he finally had his fill, he stepped away, his thirst sated at last. His stomach was still achingly empty, though.

"I'll go first in the office to make sure that it is safe," Ludwig offered.

Francis stepped up beside him. "I'll watch your back," he said. Yao also offered to help.

The door of the school office was standing open. At first glance, it appeared completely deserted. Francis stepped cautiously in the room first, flowed by Ludwig and Yao. Alfred, Matthew, and Arthur stood guard just inside the doorway while the others crowded around outside the door. Ludwig stepped lightly as he searched the room. A body lay on the floor in a pool of blood, its head smashed in. It was the only thing in the office. Ludwig stopped beside it and stared down at it suspiciously. That was when he recognized the body.

"The gym teacher," he whispered. It was indeed the coach, who just mere hours ago had been congratulating him for breaking his own record in class. In his haste to get to Feliciano, Ludwig had completely forgotten about his gym class. They had been close to the scene of the first killing. They had been in danger, and he hadn't even stopped to warn them! Were they all dead now because of him?

He felt a hand on his arm and jumped, whirling around and raising his bat. Yao flinched and backed up a step. Ludwig lowered his bat with a sigh. Yao put his hand on Ludwig's arm again. "You couldn't have done anything aru," he said quietly.

"I should have warned them. They were right there! They were in the most danger and I ignored them to go find someone who was relatively safe inside the school building."

"It's not your fault, Ludwig," Feli called from the door. The Italian's brown eyes were wide as he stared at Ludwig. He shook his head. "You didn't do anything wrong. Please don't blame yourself."

"Even if it is your fault, and I am not saying that it is, there is nothing you can do now," Arthur stated bluntly. "Stop beating yourself up and move forward!" The Brit moved into the room, the others filing in after him. He stopped in front of Ludwig. "You can't save everyone, you know. Help the people you can help and leave the others behind. I know it sounds cruel, but you've helped us all so far. Now, move on so we can get out of here and survive!"

Ludwig blinked at the Brit. He cast another glance at the man on the floor and sighed. "You're right," he admitted quietly.

"Of course I am," Arthur told him. "Now, let's get what we came in here for!"

"Look what I found!" Feliciano squealed. The Italian was holding up a wrapped rice ball. He tossed it to Ludwig. "Eat up! There are more! It looks like the teachers were keeping their lunch in here!" He pointed to an open cabinet.

Ludwig smiled as the others flocked to the cabinet. He unwrapped his rice ball and took a bite. His stomach pain was eased somewhat, and he let out another sigh, this one of relief. _Thanks guys,_ he thought to himself.

They finally found the keys to the busses. Ludwig put them in his blazer pocket and buttoned it to keep them from falling out if he had to run. The food that they had found had done wonders for restoring their strength. Everyone was currently lounging around on chairs, munching on the last of the food and restoring themselves. Ivan and Yao were in the office's bathroom, washing some more of the blood off of themselves. Ludwig was considering going to the dorms for a change of clothes. The blood on his uniform had dried, making it harder for him to move. He crackled at the slightest movement.

"A change of clothes would be nice," Francis seemed to read his mind. The Frenchman observed his uniform with disgust.

"I was thinking that too aru," Yao responded, coming out of the bathroom with Ivan on his heels. "I'm filthy aru!"

"We have to go back to the dorms anyway," Feliciano said.

Ludwig glanced at him. "What makes you say that?" he asked.

"I need to see if fratello is there," Feli responded. "I have to know that he is not there before I leave."

Ludwig let out a breath through his mouth. The Italian was right; if Lovino was in the dorms, they couldn't just leave him there. They had to check. He wanted to see if Gilbert was in his room as well.

"We could get a change of clothes as well," Alfred agreed. "I want my bomber jacket. I left it in the room this morning because it was so warm out."

"It will be a quick trip," Arthur said. "Since we all live in the boy's dorm, it shouldn't take too long."

"Fine," Ludwig agreed. It would be nice to have a change of clothes. "Let's go now. We've been here long enough." The tall German stood to his feet and stretched his sore muscles. The others followed suit. Matthew walked to the door and glanced out into the hallway.

"The coast is clear," he called softly.

The group trooped into the hallway again, walking quietly despite the fact that there seemed to be no more corpses in their area. Ludwig ran over the layout of the school in his mind. The stairwell they had come up to get to the office was out of the question. That one was swamped with dead bodies. There was another stairwell on the opposite side of the floor. That one was probably the best bet, although they didn't know if there was an ambush waiting for them in that one too. They would have to risk it, though. The group crept through hallway after hallway, avoiding the trampled bodies they saw on their way. The carnage was nightmarish. They looked pointedly away from each dead student they came across, hoping that they would not recognize anyone that they knew.

They finally reached the stairwell. Kiku put his ear against the metal door and listened for a good minute. "I can't hear anything," he informed the others. "That doesn't mean that it is deserted, though."

Alfred slowly pulled the door open and looked inside. It seemed deserted. Ivan and Matthew walked into the stairwell and looked down the flights of stairs.

"It's deserted," Matthew told everyone. Feliciano breathed an audible sigh of relief.

It was indeed deserted. They made it down to the ground floor without any trouble. The problem arose when Kiku listened at the door leading out into the hall.

"I can hear them," Kiku said quietly. "I don't know how many are out there."

Ivan slowly pulled the door open, careful not to make a sound, and stuck his head out. "Too many," he reported when he pulled back. "However, we can clear a path easily if we don't try to kill any."

"Alfred and Feli, you both have long weapons," Arthur pointed out. "Ludwig and Kiku have one too. You guys should go first. The rest of us will follow behind you."

Ludwig agreed and took his place by Feli. Ivan opened the door again and they crept out into the hall.

The hallway was indeed swamped by dead students. There were not as many to the right of them, so Alfred led the way in pushing some to the side. Kiku followed, with Feliciano and Ludwig bringing up the rear. The others followed behind them. Feliciano stuck close beside Ludwig, casting scared glances at his surroundings as he pushed dead students back. The corpses didn't notice the living creeping by them. Once they were clear of the hall, Ludwig let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He looked around.

From what he could gather, they were in the History hallway. They needed to get back to Mathematics. At least they weren't too far away. They would have to pass a door to the school to get there though. The areas around the doors were infested with corpses, which worried him, but as long as they were silent they should be fine.

They crept through halls infested with bodies, some lying motionless on the ground and some walking around them. The stench of blood was unbearable. All of the bodies sported grotesque wounds; there was one man lying on the floor who had lost part of his skull. The bone was lying broken around him. The gaping hole in his head revealed part of a brain. Ludwig thought that he was going to be sick. Francis and Matthew were holding hands and doing their best not to look at the carnage.

When they reached the door of the school, Alfred and Arthur looked around the corner.

"There are a lot of them," Arthur informed them. He looked tired and sad. "You guys remember that Turkish bloke, Sadiq? He's out there too."

Kiku's eyes widened and he glanced out in the hall. He let out a curse in Japanese. "I don't see Heracles though," he announced, relief evident in his voice.

"Let's go. Remember to be quiet," Alfred told them. The American led the way out with the others following him.

Ivan suddenly let out a gasp. There was a blonde girl stumbling over towards their group. She held a lethal looking knife in each of her dead, grey hands. She made her way towards Ivan at the sound of his gasp, brandishing her knives.

"Natalia, stop," Ivan whispered, backing up rapidly until he hit a wall. The girl kept coming until Kiku put an end to her. Ivan just stared at the corpse of his sister. "Even in death, she comes after me," he murmured, his face still ashen. Ivan shuddered and straightened up. "Lead the way," he told Alfred quietly.

"Sorry about your sister, Ivan," Yao murmured to him once they were clear of the doors.

"I am just surprised that she was actually killed. She is so resilient," Ivan replied. He wasn't smiling anymore, although he didn't look devastated that Natalia was dead.

They made it to Mathematics without having to kill anyone else. Ludwig didn't like the thought of leaving these things alive (or in a semblance of life), but he needed to conserve his strength to get him and the rest out of here alive.

In another stroke of luck, Math Lab 2b was still deserted, although Ludwig could see a few dead walking around outside of the opened window. He stuck his head out of the window and counted five of them. They must have wandered around from the doors while they were in the school. They could get out fine without having to kill any of them.

Ludwig clambered out of the window. Feliciano was next, followed by Arthur. One by one, everyone climbed out and stood on the grass. Francis breathed in the fresh air deeply, a relieved smile making its way onto his face. Ludwig understood completely; outside, the smell of blood and gore was less stifling and was carried away on the wind. Ludwig breathed deeply as well before leading the way around the school building in the direction of the boys' dorm.

The dorm stood at the top of a hill. It was a fairly new modern building; to enter, they had to swipe their ID cards. Ludwig would have felt safe being in the locked building if not for the fact that it might now hold deadly secrets inside. Undoubtedly, students would have run into the building for safety, many of them probably bitten, only to change and then kill the rest of the students. It was a risk going in there, but one Ludwig was willing to take. They had to make sure that no one they loved was inside.

The room Feliciano shared with Lovino was on the second floor; so were Yao's and Kiku's. Arthur and Alfred also had rooms on the second floor. Ludwig's room was on the third while Francis and Matthew's room was on the fourth. If Ludwig remembered correctly, Ivan's was on the first. It wouldn't take long for them to run in, check for anyone they knew, change, and run out. Still, Ludwig was certain that there were dead students lurking in the once safe and secure halls of the dorm.

"This won't be easy," Arthur observed. They stood at the top of the hill in front of the doors. Arthur had his ID card out, tapping it against his thigh nervously. "There will be more of them in there."

"I'm going in," Feliciano said in a tiny, scared voice, "to look for Lovi." He took a small step forward, but stepped back almost immediately.

"Let's just go. Be quick about it," Ludwig ordered.

"Wait!" Alfred said. "We need to make sure to go in pairs. We don't need to go anywhere alone. Everyone choose a buddy!"

"Got mine," Francis immediately wrapped his arm around Matthew.

Feliciano grabbed Kiku. "Be my buddy?" he asked with a shaking smile.

"Yao, you join us," Kiku suggested. "Our rooms are close to each other."

"I'll go with Arthur," Alfred announced.

"Ivan smiled brightly at Ludwig. "That leaves you with me, da?" he told the German.

"Alright, let's go. Please be quick," Ludwig found himself begging.

Arthur stepped up to the door and swiped his card. He carefully opened the doors to the building.

The group silently trooped inside. Ivan motioned Ludwig down the right hand hallway while the others trooped up the stairs. The building was eerily silent. There was no sign of movement. Ludwig's ears were pricked for the slightest sign of movement or sound.

They got to Ivan's room and went inside. Ludwig stood watch in the open doorway while Ivan changed. There was no sign of anything, living or dead, in the building. Ludwig didn't like this one bit.

**Kiku's POV**

The second floor seemed deserted. Kiku listened quietly at the doorway leading to the stairs before leading the others out into the hall. Francis and Matthew continued up the stairs to their room on the third floor.

Feliciano made a beeline straight to his room. He listened at the door and then hurriedly unlocked it. He all but ran inside. Kiku and Yao followed him in and shut the door behind them.

Feliciano was looking around Lovino's side of the room. There were signs that someone had been here recently, including a bloodied uniform cast aside on the floor. Lovino had been here not long ago. Kiku sighed in relief; Feliciano's twin was still alive. A note thumb tacked to the wall on Feliciano's side of the room caught his attention.

"Feli," he said, bringing the note scrawled in hasty handwriting to his friend. Feliciano desperately scanned the letter before sinking down onto Lovino's bed in relief.

"He says that he was here and he put a time on it; 10:29 am. That was like 30 minutes ago. He also says that he is with Antonio, who has a weapon and is keeping him safe. He couldn't wait, but he has his cell phone now so I can call him when I get a chance." Feliciano looked on his side of his room for his phone charger and hooked it up to charge while he quickly changed clothes. Kiku and Yao looked away modestly while Feli tore off his clothes and changed into new ones. He stuffed another change of clothes alone with his phone and charger into a duffel bag. He added a picture of him and Lovino, with Kiku, Ludwig, and Ludwig's older brother Gilbert at the park.

"So we don't forget," he said quietly, noticing Kiku's expression. He threw the duffel across his shoulders. "It also may be wise to get another change of clothes, because these will get bloody again."

"They'll also get in the way if we have to run," Kiku pointed out but didn't press the matter further.

Yao and Kiku's room was down the hall from Feliciano's. Feliciano opened the door to his room and yelped. A dead person was standing in the hall, facing their door. He lunged forward and Feli slammed the door in his face. The boy started pounding on the door, his inhuman strength making the sturdy door shake in its frame. Feli slowly backed up.

"He'll draw more of them with all that noise aru!" Yao said. He ran forward and opened the door, moving out of the way as the boy stumbled into the room. Yao broke its head and looked out in the corridor.

Down the hall, another head poked out of a room. Yao tensed before realizing that it was Alfred. He and Arthur exited Arthur's room and ran down the hall to where the others were.

"What was that?" Arthur asked.

"It was my fault. He scared me and I made a noise and closed the door," Feli explained.

"A body?" Arthur asked, glancing into Feli's room. Like Feli, Arthur also had grabbed a second change of clothes.

"Yes, but I took care of it aru," Yao assured them.

"Well, here comes another," Alfred pointed behind him. Sure enough, another boy was coming up behind the group. Kiku quickly took him out and dragged the body out of the way.

"That's the first I've seen of any of them in the building," Alfred pointed out. "It's way too quiet."

"Agreed," Kiku said shortly. "We should get out of here quickly."

They watched the hall warily for a minute before making their way down it to the others' rooms. Alfred and Arthur kept going down the hall when they reached Kiku's room. Yao unlocked the door and stepped inside.

The room was neat and tidy. Yao's side of the room was decorated with panda plushies and Hello Kitty pillows, while Kiku's side of the room was plain.

"Should we close the door?" Feliciano asked.

"If we keep it open, they might hear us talking or moving around," Kiku replied, already taking clothes out of his closet. Feliciano quietly closed the door.

Yao was changed and ready with a bag packed before Kiku had finished changing. "Yao, do you know where the shoulder strap of my sword is?" he asked as he finished, coming out of his closet with a small backpack.

Yao shook his head. "You had it not too long ago, because I remember seeing it aru," he replied.

"Yeah," Kiku trailed off.

"You mean this?" Feliciano asked, holding up a strap that he found tucked slightly under Kiku's bed.

"That's it. Thank you," Kiku said in relief, taking it from the Italian and attaching it to his sword's sheath so that it could hang over his shoulders and out of the way.

There was suddenly a frantic knock on the door. All three of them jumped. Yao opened the door. Alfred and Arthur stood on the other side.

"We have to go now!" Arthur whispered, yanking Yao out of the room.

Alfred pointed down the hall in response to Kiku's confused look.

An army of dead were stumbling down the hallway towards them.

**Matthew's POV**

"Is that everything?" Francis asked. They had just finished changing clothes and Matthew had grabbed one of his hockey sticks to use as a weapon. Francis had the other one and was swinging it around, testing its weight.

"Yeah that should be it. Let's go find the others," Matthew responded just as his cell phone beeped. He looked at the caller ID. It was Alfred. "Al? You okay?" he asked nervously when he answered it.

"Get downstairs now," Alfred told him. "There are a lot of them on this floor. I don't want them to block the stairs before you can get down so hurry!"

"Okay, we're leaving," Matthew told his brother before hanging up. "He says we need to get downstairs now," he told Francis. "Apparently, there are a lot of them on the second floor."

"Mon Dieu. Let us go," Francis said and led the way out of the door. They looked both ways down the hall before making for the stairs.

"Wait! We should probably warn Ludwig!" Matthew pointed out, tugging on Francis' sleeve. "He and Ivan should be on the fourth floor by now, and I don't know if Alfred was able to contact them or not!"

Francis hesitated but nodded in agreement. "Alright, we shall go warn them. Let's be quick about it!"

**Ludwig's POV**

Ludwig stretched his arms in the air. He was finally out of his uniform and in more comfortable combat pants. He also had his combat boots on; they were much more comfortable and sensible than his regular shoes. Ivan was waiting in the hall outside of his room while he changed.

He suddenly heard a sound in the hallway and glanced out, startled, clutching the bloodstained metal bat. Ivan was watching as Francis and Matthew ran down the hall towards them, making a racket. Ludwig stepped out of his room and shot a glare at both men. Matthew squeaked and stepped behind Francis.

"We need to flee now!" Francis gasped. "The second floor has been overrun. Everyone else is waiting down in the foyer for us, but we have to hurry before they block the stairs!"

Ludwig cursed and closed the door to his room. "You're sure they are all down there safely?"

"I just called Alfred and he said that they were down there," Matthew assured him. "Come on!"

The four of them ran towards the door leading to the stairs, not heeding how loud their footsteps were. Suddenly, a door ahead of them and to their left burst open and three bodies stumbled out of it. Another door behind them did the same. Ludwig winced and dodged around the bodies in front of him. Matthew swung his hockey stick at one, knocking it out of the way.

They reached the stairs and slammed the door behind them before dashing down the stairs. Ludwig heard a loud banging noise coming from the door leading to the second floor hallway and winced. They had just managed to pass it when the door flew off its hinges behind them and dead streamed into the stairwell. _Almost there,_ Ludwig thought and jumped the last few stairs to the bottom.

Opening the door, his blood ran cold. The rest of them were fighting off a horde of students, their backs to the door leading outside. The living groups were separated by a sea of advancing bodies.

"Get outside!" Ludwig bellowed. Alfred met his eyes for a moment before opening the door and pulling Arthur and Yao outside. Kiku met Ludwig's eyes, a scared look entering his usually indifferent brown eyes. Ludwig motioned him to follow the others. "We'll be fine!" he shouted, cracking a boy's skull with his bat. "Leave the doors open!"

Kiku shoved Feliciano out of the door and backed out himself while Alfred propped the doors open with rocks. Ludwig motioned his group over to the side as the first of the dead in the stairs stumbled out to join the group in the foyer. Matthew and Francis kept advancing bodies at bay while Ludwig thought of a way around this. The dead were thick inside. Suddenly, he heard a loud clanging sound. Yao was banging on his wok, trying to draw the dead out of the doors while Kiku and Alfred killed them. It seemed to work for a good many of them; about a dozen turned at the sound of the harsh clanging and advanced on the outside group.

Ludwig glanced back at the stairs; that way was blocked. How the hell were they supposed to get outside?!

"Follow me," Ivan told them. "Kill all of them blocking that hall." He pointed to the hall to their left.

Ludwig immediately saw his plan. That was the hall his room was on. If they could get there, they could break the window and escape outside that way. "Good thinking!" he told the Russian. The group followed Ivan, beating back the oncoming horde with their weapons. They reached the hall and took off running towards Ivan's room.

There were several dead bodies in the hall now, drawn to the commotion in the foyer. They were easily avoidable. The four of them dodged around them and reached Ivan's door. Ivan dug around in his pockets for his key. He paled. "I must have dropped it," he gasped.

"Damn!" Francis swore.

"Move," Ludwig ordered, facing the door. He kicked at it hard. The door shuddered, but held. "Help me kick it in!" he told Ivan.

The noise of the two kicking the door was drawing dead bodies to them. A room down the hall opened and several more streamed out, advancing on them. Ludwig glanced at them, a wild look in his blue eyes and sent one last, desperate kick at the door. The door finally gave out and Ivan shoved it open.

"Come on!" Ludwig yelled to Francis and Matthew, who were fending off the dead with their longer weapons.

They all ran inside the room, where Ivan was smashing the window with his pipe. The glass gave easily, and he kicked the screen off the window before clambering put. It was a tight fit. Ludwig motioned Matthew through, then Francis, before observing the window and gingerly climbing out, getting cut in the process. Before he had time to get his legs all the way out, a dead student grabbed onto one of his feet and pulled with inhuman strength. Ludwig yelped as he started to slide back in the building. The other three grabbed onto his hands and pulled that way, and Ludwig kicked out at the student. It loosened its grip, and Ludwig slid out onto the grass.

"Did it get you?" Matthew gasped.

Ludwig shook his head before getting to his feet and checking for injuries. "It just grabbed me," he assured the Canadian. Matthew sighed in relief.

"Ludwig!" he heard Feliciano call out. Ludwig allowed himself a small smile as the Italian launched himself into his arms, crying. "Don't you ever do that again!" Feli wailed.

"It's not like we had much of a choice," Ludwig sighed, petting Feli's auburn hair. The others had joined them. Alfred had his arm around Matthew, a look of relief on his face. "Well, we are all safe now."

"No we are not safe," Arthur reminded him cynically, "although there are none of them around us at this given time."

Ludwig just rolled his eyes at the Brit, but had to admit that he was right. "Let's get to the buses now. We can finally get out of here and find a defensible place to hide for the time being!"

Feliciano nodded and let him go with a big sniff. "Let's go," he agreed, a smile making its way onto his face.

They set off in the direction of the school parking lot at a run, ready to finally be free of the school.

* * *

**Sorry for not updating this for so long. I kinda hit the wall for a bit. I know how I want the next chapter to play out, so hopefully it will be up sooner. I wanted to upload this chapter yesterday along with the first chapter of another disaster Hetalia fic I'm working on, since yesterday was the supposed "apocalypse," but my power went out, and subsequently took or Wi-Fi with it, so we ended up going to Barnes & Noble, which was totally the better deal! On an unrelated note, they are selling **_**Alice in the Country of Hearts**_** manga again, along with **_**Alice in the Country of Clover!**_** XD I'm such a happy girl now! **

**Anyway, thanks for being patient with me for not updating in a long time. I'm working on several fics at once, including this one, so it takes a while for me to focus solely on this fic. I'm sorry!**

**Review this if you survived the apocalypse!**


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